Insuring a new driver with divorced parents

[kaizen]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MI

My son is 16, soon to get his driver's license and I am the custodial parent. Son's father lives about 45 miles away and said that if son uses his address on his driver's license he can get car insurance under his policy that will be cheaper for him.

My questions are:

Is this address idea legal or is it fraud?

Depending on the answer to that, if it is an acceptable idea - would Dad's insurance cover son if son drove my car, or any car other than Dad's?

Is there anything else I haven't considered?

 

[Antigone*]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MI

My son is 16, soon to get his driver's license and I am the custodial parent. Son's father lives about 45 miles away and said that if son uses his address on his driver's license he can get car insurance under his policy that will be cheaper for him.

My questions are:

Is this address idea legal or is it fraud?

Depending on the answer to that, if it is an acceptable idea - would Dad's insurance cover son if son drove my car, or any car other than Dad's?

Is there anything else I haven't considered?

If son is not living with dad and dad states he is to get cheaper insurance, yes that would be fraud.

 

[sandyclaus]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MI

My son is 16, soon to get his driver's license and I am the custodial parent. Son's father lives about 45 miles away and said that if son uses his address on his driver's license he can get car insurance under his policy that will be cheaper for him.

My questions are:

Is this address idea legal or is it fraud?

Depending on the answer to that, if it is an acceptable idea - would Dad's insurance cover son if son drove my car, or any car other than Dad's?

Is there anything else I haven't considered?

As has been stated, the child's legal residence address will determine the insurance rates. If you are the custodial parent, then putting down the father's physical address as his in order to obtain cheaper insurance rates would be considered fraud - the same as it would be for ANYONE to use someone else's address as their residential address in order to get a lower insurance rate.

For all intents and purposes, it should be the CHILD who pays for his own insurance premiums. It's one of those financial responsibilities, along with paying for his own gas and vehicle maintenance, that belongs with the person exercising the driving privilege. If he can't afford to do it himself, you should probably reconsider allowing him the privilege of driving.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

That does not mean dad cannot make him an authorized user on his cars. You would need to do the same for yours. Otherwise, he is excluded from the benefit of dads policy,on your vehicles, because he is a household member of yours.

 

[I'mTheFather]

For all intents and purposes, it should be the CHILD who pays for his own insurance premiums. It's one of those financial responsibilities, along with paying for his own gas and vehicle maintenance, that belongs with the person exercising the driving privilege. If he can't afford to do it himself, you should probably reconsider allowing him the privilege of driving.

This is a parenting opinion. It should be stated as such, not as a hard-and-fast rule that all parents should follow.

 

[sandyclaus]

This is a parenting opinion. It should be stated as such, not as a hard-and-fast rule that all parents should follow.

OF course it is. That's why I said "should" and not "shall" or "must". It is simply a strong suggestion on my part.

It was exercising this option that kept my own son from getting his driver's license until he turned 18. At that point, he didn't need my permission to get the license, and he already had a job that paid the additional expense of being allowed to drive my vehicle.

 

[kaizen]

Thanks for the answers.

I would have bet that was the answer. My insurance agent said so in fact. But Dad and son have been doing a whole mental barrage of bulls*** on me. It feels tantamount to mental abuse - hollering, badgering, manipulating. Dad told me his agent said it's just fine.

At any rate, I posted to confirm what I already knew.

They have two choices. Take it or leave it. My insurance, our address. I'll pay 50% and they can each pay 25% or there will be no license.

Thank you.

 

[I'mTheFather]

OF course it is. That's why I said "should" and not "shall" or "must". It is simply a strong suggestion on my part.

It was exercising this option that kept my own son from getting his driver's license until he turned 18. At that point, he didn't need my permission to get the license, and he already had a job that paid the additional expense of being allowed to drive my vehicle.

You may have intended it that way, but it doesn't come across as an opinion to me.

I provided the car insurance for my kids, and I had my reasons. OP did not say she couldn't afford to pay for the insurance. She only asked about a situation in which she (or her ex) could save money on that insurance.

 

[justalayman]

You may have intended it that way, but it doesn't come across as an opinion to me.

I provided the car insurance for my kids, and I had my reasons. OP did not say she couldn't afford to pay for the insurance. She only asked about a situation in which she (or her ex) could save money on that insurance.

heck, I bought cars and paid for insurance and plates for my kids. It was a cheap way of getting them out of my hair and absolving me of having to run them around for the myriad activities they were engaged in.




Kaizen:



you are going to have two choices on your insurance: list your son as a driver and pay the increase (whether you attempt to make son repay you or not is between you and son) or specifically list him as an excluded driver. There is no in between. If he is an excluded driver, do not EVER allow him to drive your car because if he does, YOUR liability for damages that might result from an accident SKYROCKET while as long as he is a listed driver, you are limited to $1000 liabilility in most situations.

what dad does regarding his insurance is up to him. It is likely the son will have to be listed on both your and his policies to be covered when the son drives your car or his father's car.

 

[ecmst12]

Since kiddo lives in your household, he needs to be either listed or excluded on your insurance. Since he does NOT live with dad, dad may not have to list or exclude him since he would just be an occasional driver, but he would need to ask the insurance company (and that's not really your concern either). But to protect yourself, you need to list him.

 

[kaizen]

This insurance stuff is (or can be) so grey, it begs the reminder to be cautious.

When I discussed the question here with my insurance provider, she said it'd be fraud. She also said I could NOT say anything about son getting his license, until it caught up with him - either by an accident while driving my car or until the Dept. of Motor Vehicles updated their data base. Incidentally, I know plenty of folks in my area that do just that but it'd never be my approach.

In checking into all this, I found a company with cheaper rates for me. So I switched companies. In filling out their paperwork, it asked for my son's driver's permit number. I asked son for it and lo and behold it has dad's address on it. I asked this company if that was an issue since it's a permit and not a license. And then we began having the same conversation posted in my initial question here. She called the underwriter and called back and told me while it's "not really ethical", as long as dad provided a copy of the insurance declaration, it'd be fine. What?

This defied common sense but was noteworthy in that it came from the insurance agent's lips.

I called a lawyer who deals in insurance issues who once again confirmed that no...not only is it "not really ethical", it's fraud.

The moral of the story is use a lot of common sense, ask a lot of questions and do the right thing - always in all ways. It just struck me as really crazy .

 

[ecmst12]

What exactly are they saying is fraud? The permit should have his correct address on it, but that has nothing to do with insurance. And as far as I know, a child with a permit does not need to be added, not until they are licensed.

 

[kaizen]

What they are saying would be fraud is the original idea dad wanted me to do - to use his address, claim son lived there and get cheaper insurance. It's all fine with his permit and not being insured as a driver.

It is weird that his permit doesn't have his actual address on it. But I think that's just another way of dad undermining the relationship I have with son.

I was just sharing the conflicting info from the ins companies as a cautionary tale, because I imagine if a claim was ever filed, they might do a 180.

 

[ecmst12]

Ah, yes, that was never a good idea.

 

[kaizen]

Well after numerous discussions about this and dad knowing my position, he went and got our son a driver's license without my consent and it has dad's address on it! He's also refusing to bring son home at all...but that's a different conversation and motion for the court to now hear.

I went to the Secretary of State today and canceled the license. I'm miffed that dad circumvented that whole step that you have to do if you have joint legal custody and can't agree on a matter. I guess very few of the laws apply to him