I enjoyed writing several blog posts in April that were based on a presentation I gave to a group on frequently asked home insurance questions. I though it would be apropos, to take the same approach with car insurance and address a similar question set beginning with what factors impact your rate but have little or nothing to do with your car!
I’ve written several posts on distracted driving and how dangerous it is for both the driver and everyone else on the road. Related topics I’ve written about include the types of things that contribute to driving in a distracted manner such as phone usage, video billboards, electronic systems in most cars, etc. An article recently appeared in The Dallas Morning News and Bloomberg about a recent study that revealed the average car insurance rate increase resulting from a driver being awarded a ticket for distracted driving.
ver the past three weeks, I’ve been faced with three interesting scenarios involving young adults and how to handle their car insurance. There was the adult who hadn’t left the nest, the boomerang, and the one who’s married and out of their parents’ home but received the gift of a car from the parents. Each presented its own uniqueness in addressing who purchases the car insurance, however there was one commonality that everything hinged on. Let’s look at each one.
I had an interesting discussion with a client the other day regarding quoting their car insurance. The parents have a daughter and son attending college and the family just recently purchased a new vehicle that will be used primarily by the daughter. What’s worth noting is neither the daughter nor the son has a driver’s license. They have their permit, but neither one their license and they are 21 and 19.
Over 90% of the prospective clients I talk with have never had an explanation of what’s contained in a car insurance policy. In other words, they are paying for something without understanding what they’re paying for or why. Such was the case when I met with a mom and her adult son to review car insurance quotes I’d prepared for them. Below is an outline of what I presented and what may help you better understand what you have, don’t have, or could have.
What do you do while driving? I know I don’t always pay attention like I should. I may be having a conversation with one of my assistants or answering a client’s questions about their policies. I check email and text messages at lights, confirm directions if I’m headed to someplace for the first time, and listen to books on Audible. I guess this means I’m driving distracted, and I know I’m not the only one. But there’s a new app from TrueMotion that may make each of us a better, less distracted, driver.
There are a couple of major and minor drawbacks when anyone excludes a driver living in the household from a car insurance policy. The biggest two are what happens if the excluded driver drives a car(s) that is on the policy they are excluded from and is involved in an accident?
I was talking with a prospective client this week who has a daughter graduating later this month from a university in Texas. The question they were grappling with was whether to keep her on their car insurance that I would be quoting, or to have her get her own policy since she has a pretty nice job lined up. I run into this a few times a year and thought we’d examine how I suggest they approach the decision.
I wrote a car insurance policy for a friend’s son last year. It’s an interesting story that’s worth retelling because most people aren’t aware that many car insurance companies won’t write a policy if you or one of your kids does this. You may surprised by this too!
My office is in east Dallas one of the melting pot areas of the metroplex. Across the street on both corners are two insurance agencies which advertise car insurance for as little as $25 to $30 a month. You may wonder if it’s a sweetheart deal that no one really gets, so I thought I’d answer the question in this post which wraps up a look at liability oriented car insurance. The answer is yes, no, and what are truly getting or giving up!
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