AUTO INSURANCE ARTICLE
Am I Required to Have Auto Insurance on a Teenager?
By: mindif
Is Your Teen at Risk? Am I required to have auto insurance on a teenager? The answer is yes, if that teenager will be operating a motor vehicle.
Learner's Permit
In many states if a student driver is driving on a Learner's Permit he or she is usually covered by the licensed driver who the student is driving with. Some states require that the licensed driver be over the age of 18. Most importantly that licensed driver must be insured! If your teenager is driving with a buddy in your car and the buddy does not have auto insurance on his own or on your car then neither the teenager nor the licensed driver is insured.
Your Teen Licensed to Drive
After your teen has been issued a driver's license he can now legally operate a motor vehicle but he must have auto insurance in his own name. This can be either on the parent's insurance policy or on his own insurance.
Driving Someone Else's Car
Am I required to have auto insurance on a teenager if he is driving someone else's car? If the teenager is insured on his own or through the parent's auto insurance then he is covered. Otherwise, if he is not insured and has an accident and is a minor, then the parent's could be held liable.
Liability and the Teenager
The liability that the teenager would be responsible for if uninsured might be small or none. The liability the owner of the vehicle he was driving could be huge. Most auto insurance companies would prefer to not pay a claim if possible. If they can find that the driver of a vehicle involved in an accident was an uninsured teenager then they will probably not pay any claims. Instead the owner of the vehicle would be sued for everything possible.
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