When your first kid goes to college, it’s a celebratory occasion. You’re excited yet nervous for them on the next part of their journey – finally leaving home to be on their own. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of tasks on your to-do list to prep for their departure, but one thing that might slip through the cracks until it’s too late is talking to your college student about car insurance and car safety. Part of the reason this slips through the cracks is the uncertainty around whether or not your adult college student should stay on your car insurance policy.
Parents usually want to drop their college student from their car insurance policy because drivers under the age of 25 come with high insurance premiums. This premium is due to some harrowing statistics. Sadly, teen drivers are 3 times more likely to be involved in a fatal car crash than drivers over 20 years old. Even though dropping them from your insurance policy will save you money in the short term, it might not be the best solution from both a financial and legal standpoint in the long term.
Removing your college student from your car insurance policy doesn’t mean they won’t be driving a car. As a college student, your child might drive because they:
While not all of these situations mean your college student should be on your insurance, some of them could open up you and your child to liability in a car accident. Besides preventing potential liability, you and your child could even benefit from keeping them on your car insurance policy with specific cost-effective plans for college students, including:
Even with these discounts, there are situations where it just doesn’t make financial sense to keep your adult college student on your car insurance policy (in the short or long term). Some considerations for removing them from your policy are:
In most cases, keeping your adult college student on your car insurance policy gives you peace of mind by knowing they are covered even if they only drive during holiday breaks. Many parents decide the benefits outweigh the cons when it comes to keeping their college student on their car insurance policy, but some situations don’t make that possible.
Students going to college out of state and bringing a car often need to be insured with a policy in that state, especially if the car is in the student’s name and not the parents’. If the student is changing their permanent address to their college address, they may not qualify to remain on a parent’s policy. It’s a good idea to check with your insurance agent if you want your college student to remain on your car insurance but are unsure about whether they qualify under the terms of your current plan.
If your college student does end up in a car accident while they are under your insurance policy (or while they are uninsured and in your car) and you’re facing potential liability, contact our team at Leon Law, PLLC for a free case review and consultation to learn more about your legal options. Call (602) 780-1302 or email info@leonlawpllc.com.
DISCLAIMER: The Leon Law, PLLC blog is intended for general information purposes only and is not intended as legal or medical advice. References to laws are based on general legal practices and vary by location. Information reported comes from secondary news sources.
