Tom's Blog
That was the big question Judge Tom Jarrell and I got from parents attending the StreetSafe teen driving program this past Saturday. And frankly, I couldn’t answer it. Every month when we speak to parents and explain the huge liability risk they now face with a teen driver, they are shocked to learn this but also very disappointed that they were never told the truths about insuring a teen driver.
I understand insurance is not the favorite topic of most. People just assume they are protected and after talking with hundreds of parents over the years, I’ve found many have no idea about their exposure to a lawsuit, what liability limits they carry, if they are covered if an uninsured driver hits them or what happens if their teen driver makes a serious mistake and seriously injures or kills someone.
These are some of the lessons we share with parents and their reaction is always the same. “Why didn’t my agent tell me this?!!” Again, I don’t know why agents won’t share the truth about insurance but I don’t want any of my clients asking me this question… especially after something bad happens!
So what should you do? Regardless of whether you have a teen driver in your household or not, you should pull out your policies and call us to review all of your coverages. Even if you’re not one of our clients, we’ll be glad to help you better understand your insurance.
By reviewing your protection periodically with a North Carolina licensed insurance agent, you’ll learn about what’s covered and what’s not along with the specific limits your policies will pay for potential losses. Plus, we may find ways to save you money on your insurance. We have some tricks that can get the right protection for you and get it at the lowest cost.
Go ahead and pull out your car insurance and your homeowners insurance policies. If you have a liability umbrella policy (you should if you have a teen driver), pull that out too. Then call our office and one of our agents will be glad to help you better understand your insurance and help you get the right protection at the lowest cost.
By the way, the next StreetSafe Teen Driving Class is Saturday, December 10th at Western Guilford High School. Visit www.streetsafeus.com to register. Classes fill up very fast so, don’t delay!
