Adding a college student to your West Virginia family car insurance coverage

If you have children headed for college, among the many things you will worry about is if they will be driving at school or driving to commute to school and what level of car insurance coverage they will require in either of these circumstances. One solution may be to maintain or add your child’s coverage on your family policy. Adding a college student to your West Virginia family car insurance coverage presents a number of issues you should consider.

What are the legal requirements?

West Virginia is an at-fault state for the purposes of car insurance law. This means that the driver who causes
an accident is typically responsible for paying the claims involved (or more accurately, the at-fault driver’s insurance will pay these claims.) If your West Virginia college student is staying in state to go to school and they intend to maintain a driver’s license, s/he must carry a minimum amount of car insurance:

• $20,000 per person in bodily injury liability insurance to pay for medical bills
• $40,000 per accident in bodily injury liability coverage in case multiple people are harmed
• $10,000 in property damage liability insurance to pay for any damage to property or the other driver’s automobile

If your West Virginia student is going to college in another state, be sure you know what the insurance coverage requirements are for that state. In most cases, if your college student maintains West Virginia residency status, even when attending a college in another state, that state will recognize West Virginia’s minimum insurance coverage requirements.

How much coverage will your child need?

Keep in mind that minimum coverage is not always enough to pay claims. You wil want to carefully consider what your college student’s car insurance coverage needs may be. If your son or daughter plan on taking a car to college, you may want to be sure s/he has additional coverage for things like medical payments, collision damages, or comprehensive coverage which would kick in if your child’s car is damaged due to a flood, fire, hailstorm or wild campus party.

Get a free quote on your college student's car insurance coverage by clicking here.

How much will this cost?

The rates you pay for adding or maintaining your college student on your West Virginia family car insurance coverage will depend on more than just the coverage you choose. Some factors that can raise or lower auto insurance rates include:

• The car your student drives – is your child driving a sports car instead of a family sedan? Is the vehicle on West Virginia's most stolen automobiles list? If you answer yes to either of these questions, you and/or our student may pay higher rates. Adding safety features and antitheft devices can reduce those costs.
• Location – if your student will be driving in a more urban setting or one with a high rate of car accidents, monthly premiums may be higher as insurers tend to charge more if a vehicle is parked or operated in a larger city setting.
• Driving distances – if your student is at school more than 100 miles away from home and does not need a car on campus, consider reducing or removing coverage to save money. Many insurance companies offer discounts for these situations.
• Credit rating – as your child heads off to college, it’s a good time to talk about credit, and car insurance is just one more reason your college-bound child should develop good credit habits as a driver with a bad or no credit score often pays more for auto insurance than the same driver with a stellar credit score.
• Grades – while maintaining good grades is always an important goal, your child may qualify for a good student discount that slashes insurance premiums by up to 25 percent.

Should you set them free?

While there can be numerous discounts available for adding your college-bound student to your West Virginia
family car insurance coverage, you may want to take this opportunity to launch your son or daughter on his/her own car insurance coverage path. There are actually a handful of leading insurance companies offering special “transitional” policies for young drivers. Nationwide allows extended coverage while your college student begins setting a driving and insurance record of his/her own. Geico offers a transitional program whereby you son or daughter can establish an individual car insurance coverage policy at the rates you have earned for your family.

When it’s time to consider what level of car insurance coverage your West Virginia college student drivers may need, it will serve you well to discuss all your options with an experienced agent. Reply! can connect you to agents in your area with the experience you’ll need to get the best coverage for you and your college-bound kids.