Reader question:

My fifteen year old just got her learner’s permit. I know that I (or another responsible adult) has to be with her whenever she’s operating a vehicle, but does she still have to have auto insurance?

C.J

Yes, she does.

I know that most of the time taking out an auto insurance policy is considered to be something that you do when you own a car and, obviously, when you already have your license, but it goes a lot farther than that. There are people who have to insure their vehicles even when they are broken down and on wood blocks in the backyard, so it makes sense that someone who is actively driving a car should be insured, even if they don’t qualify for their full license yet.

It’s extremely important to get car insurance for the student driver as soon as your teenager is driving in some way, shape, or form, whether they go straight to their full driver’s license or whether they start out with their learner’s permit. Having car insurance is a big deal for new drivers because they need it more than anyone else. Having less experience, they are more prone to make mistakes and be less able to react to emergency situations. For this reason, having a car insurance policy there to back them up is really important.

Not every car insurance company is going to give you coverage for somebody who does not have their driver’s license yet, but you still need to get it, even if it means looking around for a little bit or getting some free car insurance quotes online. Compare companies and their rates so that you can get the cheapest car insurance for the student driver, and it should not be that hard at all to find somebody who will cover your child while she still has her learner’s, even if it will cost a lot. The cost is something that you mostly have to accept as a parent insuring his or her child, although there are ways to diminish it.

Cheers,

Fashun Guadarrama.