Have a son or daughter in college? If so, then you probably feel like someone took an axe to your wallet and money’s draining out faster than you can put it in. Most parents of college students are looking for any kind of savings they can get when one of their kids goes to school.
If you’re looking for savings, try looking at your car insurance. There are two discounts that seem to be forgotten about when a son or daughter heads off to UT, A&M, Tech, or their favorite school.
- College driver away from home
- Good student discount
Driver away from home: Many insurance companies offer a discount to students who go away to school. This discount is available if two basic criteria are met:
- They went to school, but their car stayed home (they didn’t take the car with them)
- The school is more than 100 miles away
In these cases, this discount can be pretty significant and should be explored by any parent whose kid left the car at home.
If they took the car with them, all is not lost. Here’s another helpful hint worth exploring: If your student is attending school in state, see if changing the address for them and that vehicle provides a savings. If the school is in a smaller town than Dallas, Fort Worth, or Houston (like College Station, Lubbock, etc.), there’s not as many drivers or traffic. Car insurance rates for these locations is often less than in a bigger city. If they’re going to school out of state, this won’t work.
Good student discount: Often this is forgotten about once your son or daughter has graduated from high school. It’s still available. Make sure your son or daughter is providing you with a copy of their grades as most insurers require proof of an A/B average every year or two.
While both of these aren’t going to offset a semester’s tuition at most schools, every little bit helps make the hole in your wallet smaller! Have any other money saving ideas you want to share with other parents? Post them in the comments section of our blog or on our Facebook page! We’d love to hear from you!
