My Child Just Got a Driver’s License. Help!

March 11, 2026

by Trey Hutt, Hutt Insurance Agency, Inc.

Speaking from personal experience, when your child gets their license, it’s a very big day. As exciting as it is for a teen, it tends to be scary and expensive for a parent. One of your first questions may be, how much is this going to affect my car insurance? The short answer, “Quite a bit,” I’m sorry to say.

Let’s get one thing out of the way. Every possible thing you can think of to get around a premium increase, in order to avoid paying for a teen driver, is something the insurance companies have all seen before. There’s just no way to avoid paying a higher premium for a teenage driver if you expect to have genuine, reliable protection. However, there are a few things you should and should not do:

DO let your agent know when your child turns 15 and/or gets a permit. Most insurers won’t charge for them until they get a license, but they still should be advised and listed.

DO add your child to your policy when they get their license. Having a history with an insurer may help you. Plus, things like multi-car discounts and discounts for good credit and home ownership can soften the blow.

DO discuss the new status with a co-parent, if there is one. Divorce and remarriage make the situation MUCH more complex, so everyone’s insurance agent should be advised.

DO NOT get the child their own policy. There are too many pitfalls to explain here, but this is asking for trouble. Even if they have their own policy with your name on the title, you’ll still be legally on the hook for any damage they cause.

DO put the child behind the wheel of a reasonable car, (i.e., large enough to protect them, but small enough for them to handle.) Don’t buy fast, exotic, or anything that’s “jacked up.” Your child should be driving a mid-sized, conservative, and hopefully, used car.

DO take advantage of good-student and driver-training discounts.

You may get insurance sticker shock, but for teens, it’s usually not a matter of whether they will have an accident, but when and how serious it is. Hopefully, they only bend some metal, which scares them into being more careful. Also, luck will play a part. As for those nights of parental worry, as you ponder all they could be doing “out there,” there’s no insurance for that. Sorry.