My son is 17M and was going 78 in a 45. Whats to come is to come but I wont let him drive because the rate is most likely going skyrocket. One of his friends has a little box shaped device in their car that I believe is connected to their OB2 port and monitors all of his driving inputs. The only way I will allow him to continue driving is if I can aqcuire and install the device. If anyone could let me know if Progressive offers this it would be appreciated, as well as advising me if this is a reasonable and practical solution as I dont want to drive him places and he really wants to continue driving. Thank you.
My son got a speeding ticket, worried about rates.
byu/Haunting_Piece8117 inInsurance
Posted by Haunting_Piece8117
26 Comments
My parents told me that if I got a ticket, got in an accident, or that my driving caused it to increase (beyond what it increased when they added me), I would be responsible for getting a job and paying that increase.
Might be worth a thought.
Your son will kill himself or someone else. Tell him to buy a bus pass.
Yes, products like these exist.
This is a question best answered by your insurance company or agent.
I am in claims, so underwriting is not my area regarding rates going up.
I am also a parent of a teen driver…you know what you need to say your teen driver as a parent. Add profanity and punishment as deemed appropriate by local customs and traditions 😂.
I believe Progressive uses “snapshot” via mobile app. Many insurance companies no longer use telematic devices that plug into OBD2 ports. They found it to be cheaper (everyone has a smartphone and no cost to mailing and loss of devices) to have people download the app on your smartphone and turn on tracking so they can track your driving habits versus sending out a OBD2 device. I wouldn’t use either of them either way even with a “discount” they provide because most people I know see initial discount and prices increase on the renewal and often times the apps doesn’t track things accurately. Plus depends on what state your in too, they don’t or can’t offer it in some states.
Not sure what state your in but 30 mph over the speed limit you will need to see what that is considered in your state. If it just a one point violation instead of 2 points then you should be able to take traffic school if he hasn’t taken on within your states limits. Once completed, then its basically wipe off his record and insurance would never knew it existed. At least that is how it is in CA. Can take traffic school for any 1 point violation and its off your record and insurance never knew you had violation. Otherwise your renewal you will see a 1 point violation against him and rated per its rating guide.
Can also buy those standalone GPS tracking devices that plug into the OBD2 ports. What some businesses do with employees that drive company cars.
Mom, I think it would great to find a device that just YOU can see. You don’t want big insurance tracking your kid and screwing him over in life as a bad driver. It’s great that you want to keep him protected and other drivers, but there might be an app he can download that just you can see, who knows what insurance will do with that information someday. They could someday Raise his rates for life, ban him from getting car insurance, who knows. But you are on to something, and you’re doing the right thing!
A whole lot more complicated than what people here are telling you. First, did you already plead guilty to the offense, was it just a traffic violation or did they include reckless or aggravated?
You can and should get an attorney to negotiate with the prosecutor to get a plea deal. They might have your son do classes or some such thing, but because he’s likely a first time offender, and your insurance premiums would skyrocket I’d take a gander that, with an attorney, you could get the traffic infraction knocked down significantly. Then you’ll get a plea deal for something like a parking violation or failure to turn on your MVR and that’s all insurance will see.
You could put an app like Life360 on his phone. I believe it keeps track of his location and his driving speed. But I have to be honest — any device you choose is just going to let you know he’s speeding. It’s not going to stop him from doing it again.
It’s easy to look at our own kids and minimize the severity of what they’ve done wrong, so I’m just going to say, parent-to-parent, that 78 in a 45 is absolutely lethal driving. Your son could’ve killed someone — including himself — and he’s lucky he just got a ticket. Truly, I would think long and hard before letting him get back behind the wheel by himself. (In Maryland, a 17-year-old going that fast would result in a 6 month license suspension and then he’d be required to take a course before he could even drive again.)
Take away their keys – give them a bus pass. Doing almost double the speed limit is enough for me to take away my child’s driving privileges. If they did it then, they will do it again.
Install a video camera to your car.
In Ontario Canada, Drivers who are involved in stunt driving or street racing are subject to: Immediate 30-day driver’s licence suspension. Immediate 14-day vehicle impoundment at roadside (whether it is your vehicle or not) Minimum fine of $2,000 and a maximum fine of $10,000.
This includes 50 Km/hr over the limit which is 31 MPH.
The towing company by me is around $300 for the tow and $91 per day storage plus taxes.
You also pay $281 to reinstate your licence.
More areas should have penalties like this.
You are going to let him drive again? You have got to be kidding!
You’re going to be put with a sub standard carrier. The only way to save your rates and policy is to make your son an excluded driver.
There are other things you may be missing with your son. 33 mph/kph over the speed limit is not a speeding or insurance issue, there is something else you’re missing as a parent with this man. Maybe seek counseling for your son out of love.
Can we show this post to that parent earlier today who was mad their rates went up so much adding their 17yo to the policy?
Hire a lawyer like the ticket clinic. It’s like $100 and they will get it thrown out or at the least lowered to no points with court ordered traffic school
If it’s going to increase your rates or not depends on if your insurance company runs his MVR. They may do it every year, every other, or every X years. Sometimes a ticket may not get caught.Â
He should go to court and see if they will knock it down if he completes a drivers course again.
I was about that age when I got popped 84 in a 65. Took a drivers course and it was wiped. His is a little faster though.
Progressive has snapshot but it won’t really give you the info you’re looking for.
There are apps. Life360 is a well known one. When I just googled it, some competitors came up as well so there is a variety.
Good on you, you’re doing the right thing. While it may be the safest option to completely refuse him access to a vehicle it’s also the least practical. Life360 with a short leash gives him a chance at being normal and gives you the ability to guide him along to safety. Set some boundaries for him in terms of actual driving speeds with severe consequences.
Good luck. As an auto adjuster for years now I said no later than yesterday that my only fear in life right now is when my children start driving.
Probably should worry about him killing people than the rates increase
If you can’t trust a 17-year-old to drive safely, then you can’t trust him to drive safely. And he shouldn’t be driving your best bet would be life 360. It has speed trackers on premium, and crash detection so when he does end up running into a tree or into somebody, you’ll at least be alerted.
He’s lucky he didn’t kill himself or someone else. He’s a hazard.
Depending on what state, going 78 in a 45 could be a felony with jail time. Better get a lawyer.
FYI be careful at the box if you have progressive if you are a bad driver they will UPCHARGE you make sure u read the TOS
Not sure what state but that speed is probably reckless and at that age my state revokes the license.
Also DO NOT fall into those tracking gimmicks. Guess what they track both good and bad. If you or your son even turns too hard on a corner your rates will go up. When you aren’t in the car to keep him from speeding and he does it again you will just see even more money going to the insurance because you let them install a tracker and it’s a silent witness to everything.
If it’s an option (state) (if he qualifies since he was going so fast etc) make him do driving school. A buddy of mine got his speeding ticket dropped like that.
To keep my rates low, I paid a lawyer about $350 to get the ticket off his record. He even had to do community service. Which I think is awesome! The next time he got a speeding ticket I took away his car and he paid that same lawyer $500 and did more community service. It stopped. No speeding tickets ever again. He’s 19 now.
If you let Progressive track the driving of anyone in your household they are extremely likely to rate you up based on speed and break usage. I live in a major city and my breaking suddenly has very little to do with my driving. Therefore I won’t allow an insurance company monitor my driving.
There are apps you can install on your son’s phone. They do cost money.
I hope you stick to your boundaries and work something out.
Because he’s living in your house and still might drive your car, with or without your permission, your rates will likely still go up. If teens can find daddy’s guns, they can find daddy’s spare car keys.
I’d pay for an attorney honestly because those rate hikes are 5 years
It’s not the first time your son has exceeded the speed limit by 33mph – it’s the first time he got caught. I can guarantee he’s committed at least a dozen similar offenses before actually being caught. Be thankful that nobody was seriously injured or killed by your son’s behavior. You should be worried about far more than his insurance rates right now