This weekend I was driving on the freeway and my tire exploded. I was in the furthest left lane and had to cut across four lanes and park on the shoulder and wait 45 minutes for a tow truck. Cars were flying by only inches from my car. It was unbelievably scary; I didn’t want to get out of my car for fear of being hit. It was so scary that was all I could concentrate on. I couldn’t even think about the damage until I got home. And the damage was bad. Really bad. I didn’t know that a blown tire could be that bad. The front left side of the car was completely torn up, like a small bomb had exploded.

What Kind of Car Insurance Do I have?

Once I calmed down I was glad that nothing worse happened and that I was ok… I started seriously thinking about the damage. And I quickly realized that I have no idea what kind of car insurance coverage I have. I’m twenty three and a recent college graduate, and I am one of those lucky young adults whose parents still pay for their auto insurance. But in their financial generosity, my parents also did me a disservice. When I got my license and got my first car, my parents got me insurance right along with it. I was not involved in the shopping process in the slightest. I didn’t even do any research of types of insurance or the companies out there. Although I’ve had many a car problems in the past, I’ve been fortunate, that I hadn’t needed to use my car insurance. So this weekend was a rude awakening and got me to thinking about young adults and financial responsibility.

Now I’m old enough and financially independent enough to understand relatively simple things like car insurance on my own, so I do feel behind. I wish my parents had pushed a stronger sense of consumer responsibility on me. An important aspect of financial planning is teaching your family, especially your children about how to do it. And a vital part of this education is learning to keep track of what money is spent on.

Insurance is extremely important and is often a large chunk of the family’s monthly bills, so it stands to reason that everyone in the family, both those who contribute to the family income and those who will at some point have to pay these bills on their own, should know all that there is to know. Luckily, there are websites that exist specifically to help people of all ages to understand auto insurance.

Car Insurance – The First Step

The first step for the younger generation is to know what kind of insurance exists and exactly what it protects. This is especially important when this younger generation begins to drive, but it’s never too early for financial prowess. Once you have a basic understanding of what exists and how it works, you can delve into the family budget to appreciate exactly what kind of insurance the family has, how much they pay for it, and how much of the budget it takes up. This is a very useful exercise and will undoubtedly come in handy in the future.

For those young adults who are now learning to fly (financially speaking) without the help of parents, this exercise will be immediately beneficial, especially if you are considering signing up for a new policy.

See Also:

What Kind of Car Insurance Do I have?

Car Insurance – The First Step

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