Talk To Your Insurance Agent!

When a parent visits my office with questions about adding a teen driver to their auto insurance policy, I most often begin by telling them one thing…Every time your child pulls out of the driveway; he or she is putting everything you as a parent have, at risk.  Of course, it is the responsibility of parents and driver educators to make sure the risks to the parent’s most valued asset, the child, are known and understood fully.  In addition, a good insurance agent will help parents understand how to protect the family’s financial assets and protect them to the fullest extent possible.  Let your child know that the responsibilities of driving and the consequences of their decisions are ones that will affect not only them, but the whole family.  Consider making your student a partner in understanding your insurance policy and billing, giving them a greater understanding of the financial responsibility they are or will soon be undertaking…a responsibility that goes hand in hand with the privilege of driving.  Explain or have your agent describe for them, what their auto insurance policy can and cannot do, and what the addition of their name to the policy means to the family’s insurance financial obligation.  It is important for a young driver to understand the family investment and the trust that is being made on their behalf, so they know their place as a stakeholder in the process.  It is also a good time for parents to show their teenagers the importance of maintaining a good driving record.  While the sticker shock that most parents feel on adding their teenage driver is substantial, it is nothing compared to the surprise a family experiences when that same driver completes their first year or 2 with a bad driving record.  A good or bad record will affect their insurance premiums from day one.  As well, a new driver should know that the record they accumulate could be seen by future employers.  Show your young driver that a clean driving record is something to be protected for the benefits it will reap.  For your peace of mind, select an insurance agent that you feel is “in it” with you and will do their part to “insure” success for your new driver.  -Steve