<p>"150 an hour? you can find cheaper, I am sure</p>
<p>My Ds were 30 an hour"</p>
<p>I paid $30 for my daughter, as well, here in NYC. I think that was money well-spent and it was able to reduce our insurance for her.</p>
<p>I don’t get the insurance thing, either. We got a letter from our insurance company (we have life insurance with them too) when ZG turned 16 to remind us to put her on our insurance. Since the driving age is 17 here, I didn’t worry about it, but we would be breaking the law if we hadn’t put her on when she got her license. I am a paranoid mother, but I’m glad that she had excellent driving instruction. She’s a better driver than I am (I hate to drive with a raging passion) and is very gracious about running errands when she is home.</p>
<p>There’s something very odd about this story. Can it really be that the mother insists on a driver’s lesson that costs $150 an hour? Can it be that she hasn’t put the daughter on the insurance?</p>
<p>I didn’t drive until I bought my own car at 18.
My older daughter doesn’t have a car ( she is 25) or access to one, until she was graduated from college</p>
<p>Some districts have driving classes, but often you don’t get alot of driving time.
A place near us that is 30 hours in class, 6 hours behind wheel is $675.
THat reminds me- I have to think of a time when D can take it- she has always been too busy.
I think kids should learn to drive, and if possible parents should pay for it, but optimally I think kids should earn at least half of the cost- otherwise wait till they are 18 & pay for the whole thing themselves.</p>
<p>My guess is that the mother is just really not ready to have her daughter drive out of fear. I was pretty fearful when my daughter’s got their licenses.
One was a December, possible icy,snowy road new driver…the next was a 4th of July weekend in a tourist saturated , aggressive visitor drivers fear.
As hard as it was, I did let them do it.
I know people that place similar restrictions on their teen drivers.
I worry that young drivers do not have enough driving experience before going off to college, so I sucked it up.
I still have my restrictions about driving too ar away from home though…even with my 20 yr old:)</p>
<p>oldfort – I don’t think it is an issue of not being ready to let go, the OP says she attends a boarding school. that doesn’t match up with not being ready to cut the apron strings, at least a little.</p>
<p>My guess is that it has to do with maturity. I don’t know of a single state where insurance is not required. the OP sounds like she just can’t understand why on earth her mom doesn’t let her do what she wants to do – she has no understanding of the cost, the requirement to have insurance or the risks involved. I wouldn’t let her drive either.</p>
<p>OK to respond to some issues. When I said it is not a neccesity, it was kind of a stretch. My mom has yet to put my older brother or my stepdad on her insurance. My mom is cheap (why she did not pay for drivers ed before) and even if I took all the classes she wanted she would never put me on her insurance, just because she is that way. </p>
<p>About letting go oldfort is right. You would think that sending your child to boarding school make you more relaxed with your child growing up, but she actually sent me to boarding school so I would not be around the “dangers” of public school. It was more of a way to lock me away, it is all girls.</p>
<p>Responding to the immaturity post. I have to say I am really offended. Boarding school made me independent, and that is why I complaned about “my mom not letting me do want I want her to do” when I am qualified. I do understand the cost, and I also understand that my mom doesnt add ppl to her insurance.</p>
<p>In my area, driving schools charged $40 per hour 3 years ago.</p>
<p>I have a friend who refuses to add her children to her insurance. The reason is that she does not want her rates to go up for their fender benders. If they want to be licensed they must get a job, save, buy their own used car, and pay for their own insurance policy.</p>
<p>OP, I think what you are not processing is this: what happens tomorrow if you drive and cause injury to another person? Who pays?</p>
<p>I can’t account for your Mom’s decisions or way of thinking. I’m trying to protect you from her way of thinking, which apparently allowed you to get a license without insurance protection.</p>
<p>for all the people with cheap driving lessons, was it a package deal?</p>
<p>I think a lot of parents believe it’s a lot safer to send kids to boarding schools than for them to stay home and go to the local public schools. Many parents actually do that when they feel they have lost control over their kids. </p>
<p>I believe in NJ I could allow people with valid car license to drive my car even if they are uninsured. If there is an accident, my insurance company would be responsible for it. I don’t think it is illegal to have a driver license if you do not have a car. I have many friends in NYC with drivers license, with no insurance and no car.</p>
<p>As I have mentioned before, now my older daughter is away at school (very similar to OP), having her on our insurance costs very little (relative to when she was a primary driver on one of our cars). Of course, we take on the risk of her getting into a car accident or moving violation and increasing our car insurance premium.</p>
<p>I am also a believer that it is my responsibility to make sure my kids are good drivers before they go out to the real world. When you travel for business it is often necessary to drive. My husband insisted our daughter to learn to drive a stick just in case she has to drive outside of the US.</p>
<p>^^^ agreed</p>
<p>In NJ, if you are a resident of the home where the car is , you definitely need to be on the insurance. It is not a choice. Yes, the car is insured, not the person, but all members of the family must be listed on the insurance. You cannot “refuse to list them”.</p>
<p>garland - would OP be considered a resident of the home? If what you are saying is true, then proof of insurance is necessary when you get your license in NJ?</p>
<p>proof of insurance was necessary for the ar I was driving on my road test, but nothing else</p>
<p>Oldfort–even when my kids were at college, I had to keep them on.</p>
<p>You don’t need proof of insurance for the test. You need to add them to your insurance as soon as they get the license (that day.)</p>
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<p>That is true UNTIL you get your own license. After that, if you don’t have insurance you are considered an “uninsured driver” in this state. </p>
<p>I’m sorry…whether required or not, it is VERY risky for a young driver (actually any driver, in my opinion) to drive a car without insurance. I would not allow it. Period.</p>
<p>We have kept all our drivers on the insurance. Even though 1 is presently not driving(his rate is reduced since he is away at school without a vehicle). We kept them both on as a precaution in case they drive someone else’s car while away at school and have an accident. We would never let our children drive any car if they were not insured. To big of a liablility for us. Plus having car insurance is the responsible thing to do if you plan on driving.
For the OP. When I was in high school my Mom for some reason refused to let any of us drive. She did allow us to get a license if we wanted. Back in my day you did both drivers ed and training for free in school. Several of my siblings did not get a license since we figured why bother since we can’t drive. I never did figure out why my Mom wouldn’t let us drive. But that was the way it was. All 6 of us survived. Some of us not getting a license till we were in our early 20’s and buying our first car and paying our own insurance. My Mom used to say about some questions the only answer was “because I said so!”</p>
<p>I do not know of any state where it is legal to drive without insurance. Your mom is not being “cheap” by not putting your brother or stepfather on the insurance - she is breaking the law. If either of them are stopped for any reason or get in an accident, the consequences will make her wish she had paid for the insurance to start with.</p>
<p>I noted something else in one of your posts - you said your mom let your brother drive even “after his accident.” I think that may be the key. How bad was the accident?</p>
<p>It sounds like your mom has been somewhat overprotective of you, if you were sent to boarding school to “protect” you from public school (not that everyone who sends their kid to boarding school is overprotective, it would depend on their reasons for choosing that option for their kid).</p>
<p>Eventually you can get a job, buy a car and get your own insurance. Your mom won’t be able to stop you then. In the mean time, I don’t think she’s being reasonable. Both her allowing other family members to drive without insurance, telling you that you need $150/hour driving lessons seem ridiculous. She doesn’t want you to drive for whatever her reasons are, and she’s putting up roadblocks to be sure you don’t.</p>
<p>We did pay $300 for our son to take a 3 hours Advanced Driver Training class that was held on runways at a closed airport and taught high-speed, highway defensive maneuvers that simply couldn’t be learned on-road. Is that the class she wants you to take? It was worth it. My daughter’s regular on-road driving lessons will be much cheaper, but we will eventually have her take the Advanced Training as well.</p>
<p>I know that my mom is breaking the law, but she is my mom, what am I supposed to do?</p>
<p>Lalafum, I do think this is all about her overprotectiveness, and I have no idea how to make her understand that I need to have some independence. She has done other things also, such as make it impossible for me to get a job, her excuse being “do not work until you have to” we by no means are well off financially, I am getting full need based aid to the college I will attend. When I told her about working for my student contribution, she said “that is for the parents,” but I eventually got her to realize that I should try to be somewhat independent.</p>
<p>I try to talk to her about this, but it gets nowhere</p>