Many parents dread that day when their kids reach that great milestone and their auto insurance rates skyrocket: the sixteenth birthday (15^th in Louisiana). Once upon a time, that was when our baby girls were allowed to date. Nowadays, most of them start dating a lot earlier than that, but they still have to wait for sweet sixteen to obtain the pinnacle of a teenager’s life: their driver’s license. If you’re anything like most parents, one of the first things you notice is that your car insurance quotes have gone through the roof.

We all want to provide the best things for our kids, of course. And as they become old enough, as long as they are responsible, one of those things is a set of wheels. Having a car (or at least access to one) affords a teenager a taste of freedom which is important for them as they get ready to embark on adulthood in a few short years.

Still, unless you happen to be independently wealthy, allowing your teen to touch the keys can be an expensive proposition. While we can’t change that, we can offer a few suggestions to help minimize the impact of your teenager’s new ticket to freedom:

• Buy a four door car if you haven’t already. We know, nothing says uncool like a sedan. Trust us, your kids will whine and plead for a cooler car. Resist them at all costs. Teenagers should not be allowed to sit behind the wheel of anything with two doors until they turn 25 and/or are on their own getting their own car insurance quotes.
• Make sure your car has a good safety rating. This is important for obvious reasons, beyond the fact that it will save you a few bucks on your car insurance.
• Make firm rules about using the car. Make it abundantly clear to your kids that one ticket will indeed be the end of the world, at least as far as their driving privileges are concerned. Make firm rules regarding cell phone use, radio volume, and how many/which friends are allowed in the car.
• Add your kids to your insurance. Trust us on this one. This is not an area to try to skimp and pull the wool over your agent’s eyes. The last thing you want on top of having your car totaled is an insurance adjuster who doesn’t want to pay out on a claim because you lied on the forms to save a few bucks.