As the mom of teenagers, I spend a fair amount of time talking with other parents of teenagers. The controversy over whether or not to buy a teen a car, provide the family car, expect them to earn and purchase their own car or other variations on what the parents’ role is in teen transportation is an incredibly hot topic. For those of you who have younger children, maybe this will give a chance to “plan in advance” and practice up–thinking about where you stand on the “teens and cars” issue…
For some parents, money isn’t much of an issue and it just seems a natural right of passage to provide their teen with a car when the time comes. Much like buying a lunch box or a computer or sending them to camp. For others, there is the question of what will happen to the family insurance rates if a teen is driving the family car–not to mention how the scheduling will work in terms of making sure the car is available when a parent needs to use it.
Other parents definitely value “hard work” and insist that if a teen is going to have a car, he or she is going to need to earn the money to pay for it, as well as the insurance, gas and maintenance, herself. It is also common for parents to ask that a teen come up with a portion of the money for a car, or that if the parent provides the car, the teenager will need to pay for gas and insurance.
There are also plenty of parents who are simply not into purchasing or providing a car at all. Certainly, families who live in large cities or families who use public transportation and don’t even own a car–it may not seem a priority at all to provide a teenager with a car. Kids who live in large cities, like their parents, get around just fine using public transportation and may not feel the pressure to see driving as a right of passage or sign of inevitable emancipation.
So, where do you stand on the issue? Do you see yourself buying a car for your teenager or letting him earn the money and purchase it on his own?
See Also: How’s My Teen’s Driving and Teenage Driving: An Introduction