While some milestone birthdays are commonly celebrated – getting a driver’s license at 16 years old, for example, or having a first legal alcoholic beverage at 21 – a few other ages mark lesser known life events. A 12th birthday, for example, is the point at which a person can first apply for a hunting license; at 18 years of age, a person can legally vote in elections, buy a gun or tobacco product, enlist in the military, or be sentenced to prison,; at 25 years old, a person becomes eligible to run for the United States House of Representatives, and becomes statistically half as likely to be involved in an auto collision than a driver between the ages of 16 and 24.
For this reason, 25 is typically the minimum age at which a person can rent an automobile from most companies. Some car rental companies do allow drivers under the age of 25, sometimes as young as 18 years old, to rent an automobile, but typically with a larger rental fee to offset the higher insurance costs. Auto insurance often becomes even less expensive for people when they turn 50. A few other personal details, other than age, that are often used to calculate insurance costs include: gender (women are statistically less likely to be involved in an accident than men), location (citizens of large metropolitan areas pay higher premiums due to increased accident risk), and driving record.
