<p>My D is going to an out-state college this fall and she will not drive there. Her current car insurance for a teenage driver is quite expensive. Should I keep her car insurance? Or are there any alternatives, like reduced rate? Thanks.</p>
<p>When my D went off to college, I called the car insurance company about this very same thing because it is so expensive and she was going to be out of state and not driving too often. They gave a “discount” because she was mostly living out of state but it kept her insured for the times she might drive when back home, etc. That seemed like the best option. However, disappointly, the “discount” is very small. Now, I have a second D heading to college out of state this fall and I will call again about this but be aware that the change in status is not as helpful on the pocketbook as I would have thought. </p>
<p>Susan</p>
<p>PS, I can’t see canceling the insurance because she would be driving when home on vacations or in summer, right?</p>
<p>Just don’t get Progressive Insurance, if she gets one ticket they will double her rates, probably more. Plus the people who work human resources there smell bad. Go with Nationwide Insurance.</p>
<p>It may be easier than that. Our agent told us that “insurance follows the vehicle, not the driver.” Therefore, we will take him off the policy entirely. If he drives at his out-of-state school with the car owner’s permission, he is covered under their policy. When he comes home for short periods, he is covered under ours as a “guest” driver of our vehicle with our permission. </p>
<p>This may not be feasible in your state, but it certainly makes for a less expensive life in NC!</p>
<p>Call your insurance company. They will advise you about college students. Ours has an “away at school” discount for students who are more than 100 miles from home while at college. The reduction is substantial, but DS is fully insured when he drives. The “follow the vehicle” insurance is NOT as comprehensive as full coverage. You would need to read your policy.</p>
<p>I live in Massachusetts and my son attends college out of state where he does not need a car. What I do is take him off the policy when he is away and call the insurance agent just before he comes home to put him back on the policy for the period her is home.</p>
<p>I am only paying insurance for him during breaks and the summer. It has saved me considerable money.</p>
<p>I work for an insurance company, so perhaps I can provide insight on this one. The answer to your question is determined by the state in which you live. Insurance companies are governed by insurance regulators in each state. In some states, you can completely remove your student from your policy while he/she is away at college. In other states, you will receive a small (or even no) discount. Still other states allow something in between. Our policy increased by $130 per month, from $160 to $290, when we added our daughter (and that’s with the ‘good student’ discount). While she is away, our policy is reduced by a whopping $25 per month – and that’s only because her school is more than 100 miles away and she has no car on campus. If it were less than 100 miles, there would be no discount, whether she had a car on campus or not. So, the short answer is this: Whether you can remove your student from your policy and whether there are any savings is determined by the insurance regulatory requirements in your state.</p>
<p>Do you know what the policy is in Virginia?</p>
<p>Thanks for responses. We live in Pennsylvania and our Insurance Company is AllState. I may need to AllSate, but is there anyone with a similar combination?</p>
<p>Confidential – I don’t know what the policy is in Virginia. (I don’t sell insurance policies. I just work in my company’s communications department.)</p>
<p>I don’t think this particular issue varies by state.</p>
<p>If your student is away at college without a car, there is no reason to keep him on the policy as a named driver. No reason.</p>
<p>When he visits for the weekend, Xmas break, spring break, he is covered under your policy as a person driving the car with your permission. Just as if you loaned your car to your brother in law or your neighbor.</p>
<p>The student-away-at-school “discount” is a ripoff. The insurance companies are discounting something you don’t need anyway.</p>
<p>Yes, dt123, but my brother in law and my neighbor are insured under their own policies as well. I shudder to think of my son borrowing a car only to find out after a wreck that the owner is uninsured or underinsured. Legal and medical expenses add up very quickly, and if the owner has no assets, I fear they will go after mine.</p>
<p>Pittheels, if your daughter eventually does take her car to school, check and see if the rates are lower in the area where she will be living. You may be able to reduce your rates that way. Unfortunately for us, the area where my son attends school does not net us any savings, but it could for those going from an urban to a suburban or rural setting.</p>
<p>Not really. Your insurance covers your car and all named and authorized unnamed drivers. Your neighbor’s insurance on his car would not come into play in any incident involving the neighbor driving your car. Read your policy. Most are written in plain English these days and relatively easy to understand.</p>
<p>Most insurance companies require all licensed drivers who are members of your household to be named drivers on your insurance policy in order for them to be insured while driving your vehicles whether they have their own vehicle or not. You should be careful or you may find yourself in the situation where your college aged child is home driving one of your vehicles, has a wreck, and you find that they are not covered if they are considered to be a member of your household, but are not named as a driver on your policy.</p>
<p>This is a situation where you need to check with your agent to find out if they are considered a member of your household. Are they still on your health insurance? Do you claim them as a dependent? Are they registered to vote with your address as their residence?</p>
<p>Second Scootron’s advice. Here’s exactly what I did. I called my insurance co. and asked, “Do I need to name S on policy? He is away at school without a car nine months a year and only drives my cars occasionally when he visits.” Ins. co. rep said “No.” I followed up with a certified letter that said:</p>
<p>–Re: Policy Number ########</p>
<p>Dear Sirs:</p>
<pre><code>This will confirm a discussion with your representative over the phone today and changes made to the above policy based on that discussion.
My son [name] was deleted as a named driver and household resident, for the reason that he is a full-time college student at the University of _____________ in [far away Big Town, USA], lives on campus in [Big Town] and does not have regular access to any vehicle on this policy. All vehicles on this policy are located in [town where I live]. Your representative advised that in the event [S] were to visit occasionally, such as on a weekend or spring break vacation, and use one of the vehicles with our permission, he would be covered for liability as a person using the vehicle with our permission.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if further discussion is required.–
</code></pre>
<p>Deleting S reduced my premium about $3000 per year.</p>
<p>Thanks! Great follow-up, which we shall use (especially considering the mess our agent made of our test-case mortgage five years ago when the agency entered that business!).</p>
<p>dt123, did the insurance company reply to your letter, giving you written confirmation that your agent was correct and that your policy was golden as it stands? I know I sound jaded, but after being injured in an accident and being involved in a subsequent legal action, I learned a great deal. I know for sure that in TX, laws and tort reforms benefit the insurance companies. Call me cautious, but my agent told me the exact opposite of what you were told, and we are in the same state.l</p>
<p>I had a somewhat related issue that I encountered when adding S2 to my insurance. S1 was the primary on C1 and I am the primary on newer C2. When I added S2, they added ALL drivers to C1 and C2 - which increased my insurance to about $4K. Of course, they didn’t bother to really inform me of this policy that they have that if there are more than 2 drivers, all are automatically added to all vehicles. We signed a letter indicating that S1 and S2 NEVER drive C2 and took them off the insurance policy for C2. This dropped my insurance to under $2K. </p>
<p>A good thing to keep in mind when talking to insurance companies:
They are there to make $$ for the company, not ensure your rates are best or your coverage appropriate to your needs.</p>
<p>FWIW - when my son went to the east coast for college - I took him OFF the policy entirely. I told him that he was uninsured and should not drive other student’s cars either – and really, I don’t think it is a good idea for kids who own their cars to be lending them out to other teens. When he was home for vacations I didn’t allow him to drive, but I went back to the old practice of chauffering him around. He is now 22, drives frequently for his work and is covered under his company’s policy, but does not own his own car. </p>
<p>My daughter, who is still in high school, went out of the country for 4 months on a foreign exchange. During that time I also took her off the policy, but a few weeks before she came home I called to add her back. So basically I saved 4 months’ worth of premiums. </p>
<p>I have Farmer’s Insurance and they seem to be very flexible and responsive about these sort of changes to the policy. I have a legal background but I approach this problem on a more practical, than legal, rationale: the real question in my mind is whether the kid will be driving, not the technicalities about insurance rules. A kid who is NOT driving a car doesn’t need insurance; a kid who IS driving does need insurance. There really is no reason for a kid who is away at college without a car to be driving – if they can “borrow” someone else’s car they can “borrow” the driver along with it. The kid who owns a car and lends it to others to use really is asking for trouble.</p>
<p>I’m with state farm(i’m the student) and my regular premium is 233 a month for my car, i’m the exclusive driver. That works out to 2800 a year. (it’s ridiculous for teenage guys, even with good grades)
I talked to our agent and State Farm’s “away at school” plan is quite good. 124 a month(1500 a year, 55% of the regular premium about) and I am insured any time I come down) since BU is out for a full 3 3/4 month summer, 1 month at winter, 2 weeks for spring and thanksgiving, thats 5 1/4 months. 1500/5 1/4 is like 285. So its a rise in rate (233-285) but its not ridiculous.</p>