School Related Discounts

School is starting up again, much to the chagrin of children all across the nation. Do you remember back when you were a kid? You probably couldn’t spell insurance, let alone worry about how to save money on it (I certainly couldn’t, but then again English wasn’t my strongest subject, I was a big fan of gym). But now that you are older, and probably out of school or at least approaching its end, you’ve realized that saving money on insurance is a big deal.

Luckily, the staff at McDougall Insurance actually go to insurance school, so you can be certain we aren’t going to miss the discounts that make a big difference for you – especially the insurance discounts that are related to school.

Interestingly enough, the school related discounts available to many policyholders are actually related to auto policies only – so going to school isn’t going to save you on your home policy (although if you have a child going away to school, make sure your liability and contents coverage will protect him/her while they are away!).

There are two discounts which become available as a result of school, and both apply to policy’s that have drivers that are in school currently. So you either need to have a child on your policy who is old enough to drive and in school, or you must be a young driver yourself. Otherwise, I’m afraid you aren’t getting a break on your car insurance – no matter how well you did in Ms. Taylor’s Grade 10 Biology class.

Discount #1 – The Good Student Discount

Good grades are their own reward right? Of course they are, and they also save you money on your insurance. Life does seem to reward those who do well in school. The way the Good Student discount works is pretty simple. If you, or a driver on your policy, maintains an prescribed grade average while at school, you get a discount. Now, this mandatory average is different with each company, but 80% seems to be the most common figure insurance companies request.

If you, or someone on your policy, has grades like this, you are well on your way to cheaper car insurance! The next step is speaking to your broker and finding out if your insurance company has this discount (one of the many benefits of having an insurance broker is their knowledge of discounts).

If your company has the discount, your laughing. Just get a scan/copy of you or the other party’s official transcript (or report card for highschool), and submit it to your insurance company. Enjoy the discount, you smart student you!

Discount # 2 – Away at School Discount

The other discount has less to do with merit and more to do with mileage. If you are the parent of a child, and have that child on your insurance policy, you know how much of a financial burden young driver insurance can be (although it is worth it when little Johnny or Suzie destroys something while driving).

But when the child goes away to university or another form of post secondary education, there is a way for that cost to fall, pretty darn quickly!

You see, when your kid is across the country studying liberal arts or whatever it is that he/she wants to study, he/she is not able to drive your car! And because of this, the insurance companies are willing to give you a huge discount.

The discounts given due to your child being away at school are monstrous, cutting in some cases more than 75% off of that child’s premium, since they will only be home to drive for about a quarter of the year.

Getting this discount is also quick and easy, just get proof of your child’s enrollment in a post-secondary program, and you are golden. Although there is one caveat: the child must be going to school fairly far away. The threshold is typically 100 kilometers away from where you keep the car, so make sure your kid goes far away if you want to save on their car insurance.