Have A Student In University? It’s Time For An Insurance Evaluation

It seems like just yesterday you were leaving your child on their first day of school. Now, they’re grown up. You’ve helped them, guided them, and protected them for nearly two decades. Yet, It’s time for them to go on their own to continue their education.

Just because they’re leaving home for school in another city, or even a different state, it doesn’t mean you can’t still protect them. In fact, now is the time to protect them even more – with adequate insurance. Today, we’ll look at two types of insurance that your child should have when they’re away at university.

Auto Insurance For Students Away At University
If you send your child to university without a car, do they still need auto insurance? Many parents are surprised when their insurance agents tell them “yes.” It’s recommended that parents keep their children on their auto policy for a number of reasons, including:

1. They will be protected when they come home for a visit and ask to borrow the car to go out and see friends, etc.
2. If your student is driving someone else’s car while away at school, and that vehicles doesn’t have adequate coverage, your child will be protected by your insurance.
3. Your student may qualify for a good student discount – which can be significant depending on the insurance carrier.
4. They will have continuous insurance coverage: a good thing for when they are done with college (and your policy) and need an auto policy in their own name.

Also – you can apply for a ‘distance discount’ if you have a student at a college or university over 75 miles away from your home. If your child does take a car to school, make sure you update your insurance carrier with the car’s new address.

Home And Renter’s Insurance For Students Away At University
If you’ve sent your student off to university with the latest gadgets and tech tools (laptop, printer, tablet, etc.) you’ll want to know if these things are covered. The good new is that if your child stays in a dorm room on-campus and you have homeowner’s insurance, your policy will cover your child’s belongings – typically up to a 10% limit. So if you have $200,000 in homeowner’s coverage, your student’s belongings are covered up to $20,000.
Note: If your child leaves their dorm room (for traveling abroad of some other long-term absence) for a period of time greater than 45 days, your insurance coverage will no longer apply to any items in the dorm room. Also, if your student does not live on-campus, renter’s insurance is the way to go as most policies cover liability as well and can be had for $15 or less per month.

The Bottom Line On Insurance For Your Child Away At University
If you’re unsure about coverage for your student in any of the above two areas of insurance, give us a call. We’ll be more than happy to ensure you have peace of mind knowing that your child (or children) has adequate protection no matter what their situation.