Car insurance question

[turbostud]

Do I have to add my 17 year old to my policy? It will jack it up over $150 a month.
If he wrecks one of my cars and is not on the policy will the ins company still cover the damage?

[Black_Magic]

yes. Best thing you can do is if you have a car that is older and has liability coverage only on it, List the kid as driving that car. they are covered on any car you have. If you list them on a old car with Liability coverage on it the cost will go way down they are still covered on all cars.

[turbostud]

Originally posted by Black_Magic
yes. Best thing you can do is if you have a car that is older and has liability coverage only on it, List the kid as driving that car. they are covered on any car you have. If you list them on a old car with Liability coverage on it the cost will go way down they are still covered on all cars.

Ok thanks. I have an old F150 that is paid off that I will put him as the driver.

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by turbostud
Do I have to add my 17 year old to my policy? It will jack it up over $150 a month.
If he wrecks one of my cars and is not on the policy will the ins company still cover the damage?


No....you don't HAVE too. Your policy should cover anyone you have given permission to drive.

That being said, if he has a wreck or even gets a ticket, the insurance company will either make you include him or exclude him from your policy.

If he is excluded and still continues to drive and has an accident, the insurance company is not responsible for any of the damage.

I found this out by personal experience!!;)

[turbostud]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
No....you don't HAVE too. Your policy should cover anyone you have given permission to drive.

That being said, if he has a wreck or even gets a ticket, the insurance company will either make you include him or exclude him from your policy.

If he is excluded and still continues to drive and has an accident, the insurance company is not responsible for any of the damage.

I found this out by personal experience!!;)

great thanks.

[crzyjournalist03]

Legally, if you have a license, you must have insurance.

[44INAROW]

Originally posted by crzyjournalist03
Legally, if you have a license, you must have insurance.

all kinds of gray areas - but in answer to the question YES you should add him to the policy -preferably WHEN he got his license. Texas Auto Policy forms cover all drivers in the household but alot of companies are going with ISO FORMS which do not AUTOMATICALLY cover a child if he is not listed. It is carrier by carrier - Call you agent, tell him your son is now driving the F150 and you only need Liab and UM on it. The companies we write with (We are Independent Agents) run what they call "Undisclosed Driver" reports. you'd be surprised how many folks don't add their kids - but they can afford to buy them 2009 Ford Mustangs :doh: I paid for all 3 of my boys when they turned 16 and I think everyone else should as well. That's my story and I'm sticking to it ;)
Oh and Ranger Mom is correct. BUT - in the policy wording - it has a clause about - AVAILABLE FOR THEIR USE-- that could problematic in an unlisted 16-21 child.
To take it a step further - If I loan my car to you and you wreck it - there is coverage for the damage you cause to the other vehicle as well as for my auto (since i have collision) If I didn't have collision - I could subrogate against your carrier to repair my car.

[ASUFrisbeeStud]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
No....you don't HAVE too. Your policy should cover anyone you have given permission to drive.

That being said, if he has a wreck or even gets a ticket, the insurance company will either make you include him or exclude him from your policy.

If he is excluded and still continues to drive and has an accident, the insurance company is not responsible for any of the damage.

I found this out by personal experience!!;)

That being said, I work for State Farm and just add the kid, they will end up dropping you if something happens and he is a household member and isn't listed on the insurance.

He is a household member and has to be added, if he didn't live with you than no.

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by ASUFrisbeeStud
That being said, I work for State Farm and just add the kid, they will end up dropping you if something happens and he is a household member and isn't listed on the insurance.

He is a household member and has to be added, if he didn't live with you than no.

Not all insurance companies run the licenses to see who lives at that address.

One of my step sons lost his license for 6 months because he failed to go to a tobacco awareness class after he got caught dipping.

Geico would not insure him anymore since he had lost his license....even after he got it back.

So....I took my business from them and went to Progressive.....who would insure him.

[crzyjournalist03]

Something else to add...if you're worried about having to pay for the extra $150, tell the kid he has to pay for it. If he wants to drive, he can find ways to afford driving.

[ASUFrisbeeStud]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
Not all insurance companies run the licenses to see who lives at that address.

One of my step sons lost his license for 6 months because he failed to go to a tobacco awareness class after he got caught dipping.

Geico would not insure him anymore since he had lost his license....even after he got it back.

So....I took my business from them and went to Progressive.....who would insure him.

Progressive will insure anyone

[STANG RED]

Originally posted by ASUFrisbeeStud
Progressive will insure anyone

True. And you dont want to get hit by someone with Progressive. No matter how much their client was in the wrong, getting satisfaction out of them is almost impossible, and they will try to cheat you on everything, every step of the way. I hate em with a passion!:mad:

Had State Farm many moons ago. After one little claim, they'll drop you like a hot rock. Dont have much use for them either.

I've used Germania for several years now, and have had no trouble with them at all, and have had several claims. Full coverage on 3 vehicles cost me a little less than $200 per mo.

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by STANG RED
True. And you dont want to get hit by someone with Progressive. No matter how much their client was in the wrong, getting satisfaction out of them is almost impossible, and they will try to cheat you on everything, every step of the way. I hate em with a passion!:mad:

Had State Farm many moons ago. After one little claim, they'll drop you like a hot rock. Dont have much use for them either.

I've used Germania for several years now, and have had no trouble with them at all, and have had several claims. Full coverage on 3 vehicles cost me a little less than $200 per mo.

I can't complain about Progressive. My oldest son, whose truck I insured, but did not have him on the policy, flipped his truck and totaled it.

They paid off his truck and he ended up making $1200 on the deal.

They said I needed to either include or exclude him from my insurance and were going to send me the paperwork....I never received it.

I called my agent here who told me not to worry about it, since I was able to show where he had his own insurance on his new truck, I didn't have to do anything more.

Now...when I look at my policy, it shows that I have "no claims" on my policy, which is crazy, because they paid off a totaled truck.

I a'int complaining though!!!:D

That being said, I have never had to deal with them on the opposite side of a claim.

[skins4life]

ALLSTATE!!

I've had 3 claims since 2002. All 3 were (I'll use the term Loosely) our fault and the last one they were sued for damages. I never heard a word from them has far as being dropped or anything like that. They will check for licensed drivers at your address and add them to your policy without asking. Know this from experience. While my son was stationed in Hawaii, they added him and we had to put in the "EXCLUDED DRIVER" for him or the were going to charge us. That's the only con I have against them.

[OldBison75]

Let's look at the reality of the situation.

Is the insurance company insuring the driver or the car? If the driver is being insured, it should not matter what he or she is driving, but should be based on the driver record and other factors. If the car is being insured, like it seems, based on the different rates for different cars, then it should not matter who is driving if the car is insured.

This is the loophole the insurance companies are using to fleece us outta more money. The state law says that no vehicle can be operated on a public road in the state without insurance of certain limits. There is no law that requires that a driver be insured. However, the insurance companies have made rules that may require that all "regular" or approved drivers be listed as a condition of the policy. If that driver has a bad record or is under a certain age, there are surcharges that apply to your premium.

I saw a court case where the insurance company was refusing to pay a claim because the young driver was not listed. The lawyers for the family emphasized that the car was insured, and the drivers are listed to determine surcharges based on records and sex among other things. They also made the insurance company admit that if they had loaned the car to another person, not in thier household, they would have to pay the claim. The jury sided with the family and said that the policy is rated on the type and model of the vehicle and not on the drivers. The policy language specifies separate charges to be applied for the drivers records and other factors such as age and sex.

[bowleghorses]

My son will be leaving soon for Navy bootcamp. He is on my policy now but if I drop him he will not be covered,soon as he leaves for bootcamp,I can drop him and he is covered...go figure.:thinking:

[big daddy russ]

Originally posted by STANG RED
True. And you dont want to get hit by someone with Progressive. No matter how much their client was in the wrong, getting satisfaction out of them is almost impossible, and they will try to cheat you on everything, every step of the way. I hate em with a passion!:mad:

Had State Farm many moons ago. After one little claim, they'll drop you like a hot rock. Dont have much use for them either.

I've used Germania for several years now, and have had no trouble with them at all, and have had several claims. Full coverage on 3 vehicles cost me a little less than $200 per mo.
I may check into Germania, Stang. We have Nationwide currently and have had a string of bad luck the past nine months. My wife's nearly-new Volvo flooded late last spring, my truck caught fire in August, and we had two pipes bust last month during the freeze.

I have nothing but bad things to say about them so far. Our agent didn't have us down for flood insurance for months (and we had to ask him several times before he finally added it to our plan) and if we hadn't caught it we'd be screwed right now, the situation with the Volvo was a mess, and now the current (and ongoing) situation with our house is a mess.

Our kitchen, living area, den, master bed and two bathrooms were flooded and they offered us a $6200 check.

Needless to say, I may be in the market for a new company.

[BullsFan]

I second the rec for Germania. I switched my house and car both from State Farm to Germania and saved a combined $1300 a year. Plus I had a claim the first year on my house, and they not only paid the claim but told me I needed a new roof and paid for that as well!

[slingshot]

Mercury Mutual . That is all. Awesome company, less expensive than anyone else I've checked with (Allstate/State Farm/Farm Bureau/Progressive/Geico/etc) and they pay fast. My truck was stolen last year--paid me Blue Book value, no arguments. Hit a deer last month--got to choose my body shop, didn't even send an adjuster, didn't try to force me to use 'aftermarket' parts like some others do--just paid the claim. Very satisfied. They automatically sent a waiver covering my boys when they were taking driver's ed... I did have to add them when they got their license--hey, it is the right thing to do, I don't like paying for it either--but let's face it, teenagers (all of them!) are higher risk. Even mine. Here is their link: http://www.mercuryinsurance.com/

[K-MAC Chuck]

I'll give kudos to 2 insurance companies.

1) Bluebonnet Pride Insurance (of Liberty Hill). Yes, they're a sponsor of LHHS athletics and broadcasts. But just like the big national companies, anyone can sign up with BPI from anywhere in the world. I'm a client and love the personal service of the BPI staff.

2) Geico - had a great experience with them (4 years) before switching to BPI. Was in 2 accidents (neither one my fault) and both times, had a rental car within hours and was hassle-free in getting the car repaired.