Auto insurance can be costly enough. If you have a teenager who is about to start driving, however, you're probably about to face much higher insurance rates. Luckily, there are quite a few ways that you can cut costs. Just remember these five tips, and you can insure your teenager without spending as much money.

1. Have Your Teen Take Defensive Driving Lessons

Defensive driving classes are designed to teach drivers about driving safely in different situations. These classes can typically be taken at local driving schools and community colleges, and your teen will be given a certificate of completion after taking the course. Submitting this certification to your insurance company is a good way to score a lower rate, plus your teen will learn valuable skills that will help keep him or her safe on the road.

2. Show Your Teen's Report Card to Your Insurance Agent

Some insurance companies offer rate reductions for teenagers who get good grades. A good report card is seen as proof that your teen is responsible, which can cause insurance companies to consider him or her to be less of a risk. If your teen gets good grades, make sure that you submit a copy of his or her report card to your insurance agent to score any applicable discounts.

3. Consider Signing Up for a Separate Policy

Although multi-car discounts can often help you lower your policy rates, there are some situations when it's cheaper for your teen to have a separate policy entirely. If you have valuable vehicles or sports cars on your policy, your rates can go up significantly if your teen is on the same policy. In these situations, you may just want to sign up for coverage for just your teen and the vehicle that he or she will be driving.

4. Raise Your Deductible

If you raise your deductibles, you can drastically reduce your premium. Since the cost difference can be rather high when you have a teen on your policy, you'll often spend a lot less money each month if you keep the amount of your deductible in savings in case you need it. Then you can spend a lot less on your policy while still having necessary coverage.

5. Consider Opting for Liability Insurance Only

Many teens drive older and more affordable vehicles. In most cases, you're better off dropping the comprehensive and collision coverage and opting for liability only. You won't have to worry about paying for an expensive policy for a vehicle that isn't worth much, but your teen will still be compliant with state laws regarding insurance coverage.

Although you might be worried about insurance costs for your teen driver, you shouldn't be too concerned. As you can see, there are quite a few ways that you can shave off costs to make your teenager's car insurance a little more affordable. Just remember these simple tips, and you might be surprised by how much you can save.

For more information, contact Illinois Automobile Insurance.