When the teen has to be on the policy
Most carriers want to know about a licensed driver in the household as soon as they are licensed, and many ask about permit holders too. Not listing a licensed teen is the kind of omission that causes trouble at claim time. Tell Carly when the permit is issued; the permit stage is often free or low-cost, and it puts the household on the right footing when the full license arrives.
What drives the price
Three things: which car the teen is rated on, the coverage on that car, and discounts. A teen listed as the primary driver of a ten-year-old sedan with liability-focused coverage costs far less than a teen rated on the family’s newest SUV with full collision. Good-student, driver-training and telematics discounts are common and add up. Ask about each of them specifically.
The college question
If a student goes to school more than a set distance away and leaves the car at home, most carriers have a “student away” discount. If the car goes with them, the garaging address changes and so does the rate. If they are in a shared house with roommates, the roommates are not covered by your policy. Tell Carly the school, the distance and whether a car is going — it changes the answer.
Liability limits matter more, not less
A new driver is statistically the most likely person in the house to cause a serious accident. This is the moment to review bodily injury limits and to ask whether a personal umbrella makes sense. The cost of another $250,000 of protection is usually small compared with the exposure.
This guide is general information about insurance in Michigan, not advice about a specific policy. Coverage depends on the policy’s terms, limits, exclusions and eligibility, and a request does not bind or change insurance.