How to Remove Children From a Car Insurance Policy

Steps to Taking Adult Children off Your Insurance Policy

Teenage girl driving a car
Photo: Westend61 / Getty Images

Taking a kid off of your car insurance isn't hard, but it may take a bit more time than you think. Insurers are wary of taking a child off of a parent's plan. Since you're still related to your kids even if they aren't on your policy, you could still be held liable under certain events. The insurer could be liable as well. It is in your insurer's best interest to force you to jump through a few hoops to take your child off of your policy.

Exclude Kid as Driver

The fastest and most simple way to get your kid taken off of your car insurance is to exclude them as a driver. Some carriers will charge you a fee to exclude drivers who live in your home. The cost will still be less than insuring a teen or young adult driver on your car policy.

When you think about not having your children on your car plan, you must be aware that they may not drive your car at any time. They are not covered in the event of a car crash or other mishap. When a person excluded from a policy drives that car, it is the same as driving without car insurance. As we know, this is a big no-no that can lead to big legal problems.

Provide Proof of Other Car Insurance

To take your child off your policy, you can provide proof to your insurer that your child is insured on another plan. That is easy if the kid in question does not live in your household, but if they do, then the insurer could still require them to be listed on your plan. The only other option might be to exclude the child as a driver of your cars. Again, they would never be able to drive your cars legally once excluded.

Provide Proof of New Residence

Show a utility bill or rent payment receipt to your insurer to provide proof the child no longer lives at your home. If your teen is out on their own at an early age, proof of residency will need to be shown for them to be taken off of your policy.

Note

Continuous coverage is also a factor in premium cost. A driver who has had any lapse in coverage will be labeled a high-risk driver.

Hopping On and Off Your Policy

It is better to leave the child on your car plan instead of hopping on and off, time and again. Note that medical coverage can be extended from an auto plan even when a person is a rider in a vehicle.

It is still best for a kid to be listed as a driver on a car insurance plan when using other people's cars. Hoping for automatic coverage from the other person's car without being listed is not a good idea. You and your kid could get caught with some serious legal issues and costs if not properly insured. That will push them into a higher-cost premium bracket that continues even when their age and experience have gone up.

Weighing Cost Against Benefit

One rule of thumb is that a parent's insurance premiums will go up as much as 100% when a teen driver is added. If this is you, you could be itching to remove that young driver as soon as you can. Think twice, though. Your child will pay even more for car insurance if they try to purchase a policy on their own. While you may be tempted to take their name off of your plan, just know that if your child has a crash without insurance, future policy costs will be very high.

Note

As teens gain more hours behind the wheel and establish a track record on the road, the added cost burden that they put on your insurance payments will begin to go down.

No Age Limit Exists for Taking Children Off Your Policy

You do not have to remove an adult child from your auto plan, even if they move out on their own. As the economy causes more adult children to keep living with their parents, even after they are done with college, that may be a way to keep costs in check.

If your child has moved out of the home and is paying their own bills, you could save hundreds of dollars by dropping them from your policy. If your child is still living at home, it will be much harder than this, and you should think twice. When you have taken all of this into account, and it's now time to remove a child from your auto plan, call your agent or contact your insurer online. You will be asked to fill out a form and declare that your child will not be driving the car.

Key Takeaways

  • The easiest way to get a kid taken off of your car insurance is to exclude them as a driver. That means they cannot drive your car at any time.
  • You could also provide proof to your insurer that your child is insured on another policy.
  • It is better to leave the child on your plan instead of hopping on and off a bunch of times.
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Sources
The Balance uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
  1. Insurance Information Institute. "What Is Auto Insurance?"

  2. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "Teenagers and Protecting."

  3. CarInsurance.com. "Kids Moved Out? You May Have to Prove It."

  4. Insurance.com. "Car Insurance for Teens."

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