Getting affordable auto insurance for a teenage driver can be quite the challenge. Here are some of the things that you can do as a parent to keep insurance costs low.

Get Driving School Training

One reason that teen's insurance rates are higher is that they don't have any kind of driving record. Since auto insurance companies don't have any information to go off of, it's hard to know whether they are taking a risk by insuring your teen driver or not. In fact, the questionnaire for a rate quote usually doesn't go by age per se, but by whether a driver has more than 3 years of experience with a driver's license.

One way to offset a lack of experience is to have a driving school certificate under your belt. Many auto insurance companies accept these and offer an insurance discount in return. Check to see whether there are any specific schooling requirements to make sure you'll get that discount.

Reward Teens for A's and B's

If your student has a GPA over a certain threshold, you might also see a big discount in your auto insurance rates. Sometimes it pays to bribe your teens for their good grades.

Get a Group Auto Insurance Plan

Another thing to look at is how you're setting up the auto insurance plan. For instance, if your child is insured as the primary driver on their own vehicle, this can be costly. But if they are listed as the secondary driver on a vehicle with a more experienced primary driver (such as yourself), then the rates may go down considerably.

Make Sure They're Prepared

WIth a small driving record and a traffic violation, you'll be looking at some very high rates. Another part of keeping auto insurance low is making sure your teenager is prepared to drive their own car. You might want to observe them on the road so you can help them correct bad driving habits they've begun.

Shop Around More Than Usual

In a situation where you have a high-risk driver to provide insurance for, such as someone without a substantial driving record, the rates for insurance can vary drastically between different auto insurance carriers. It is especially important to consider all kinds of auto insurance carriers in your area to find the best rates; a few extra hours of searching for quotes could net you a substantial discount overall.