Reader’s Question:

I’m from Virginia. My father who’s 60 years old and is living with me wants to change his car insurance because he says it’s too expensive. How can I get cheaper car insurance for senior citizens?

Paul

Virginia Beach, VA

Having your father listed under your current policy would seem like a cheaper car insurance alternative and may be allowed by your Virginia insurance provider. However, it may cause your premiums to shoot up. This is because mature drivers, especially those who are 60 years of age or older, have a higher risk of getting into car crashes than younger drivers. This is due to various factors associated with ageing, which naturally decreases the driving abilities of older drivers. Older drivers generally experience hearing loss and visual decline, and thus greatly affect their capacity to operate a vehicle. Mature drivers also have limited mobility and decreased reaction time, thus the potential for great danger while driving is very high. Moreover, mature drivers who get into road accidents tend to require longer and extensive medical care. This is because they are more likely to obtain serious injuries than younger drivers. Mature drivers also have a higher risk of dying from traffic accidents because of their age. It is for this reason that it is not in the insurer’s interest to cover an older driver.

However, your father can take advantage of car insurance discounts given to senior citizen drivers. He may qualify if he takes mature driver safety classes from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) or from the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP). The discount can amount to almost 15%, depending on the company’s rating system and will be there for three years, provided that he does not get into any accident after availing of the discount.

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