Reader’s Question:

How much will a young persons car insurance in South Dakota cost? I plan to add my brother, who just got awarded his driver’s license under my policy.

Nelly

Sioux Falls, SD

A lot of people out there are actually asking the same thing! Just how much would a teen driver (or at least, someone below the age of twenty-five) cost to put under your car insurance policy? Although we can’t really give you an exact dollar amount, what we can tell you is it would probably cost you an arm and a leg. That’s right, expect a young person’s car insurance in South Dakota (like in the rest of the country) to double, even triple the amount of premiums you usually pay to keep your car insurance company happy.

If you are wondering why, young drivers in general have a much bigger risk getting involved (or causing) serious to fatal car accidents. Years worth of statistical data coming from such organizations as the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (www.iihs.org) would support this fact. The higher the risk someone represents towards car insurance coverage, the bigger the premiums charged by the insurance company to compensate for this risk.

Even if this is the case, there are still ways to mitigate the impact of a young driver on your auto insurance policy. We suggest you do the following:

1.Enroll your brother under defensive driving classes for additional discounts, and to teach him how to avoid accidents early as well.
2.Encourage him to get good grades in school, this will make you eligible to receive Good Student Discounts.
3.Shop for better rates, you can use the free insurance search tool on this website to find the most affordable rates and policies for someone with a young driver.
4.Increase your deductible to lower premiums. Check to see if paying annually would lower your rates with your current carrier.