When did you let your kids get their drivers license? (Not learners permit)

[kdonnel]

My first child was very interested in getting her drivers license. She got her permit a few days after her 15th birthday and got her drivers license at the exact one year and one day point allowed. It was exciting for her and my wife and I until we realized by how much our auto insurance premium would be impacted.

My daughter wanted to get her license as soon as possible because of some of the other young drive rules in Georgia. There are several 6 month count downs that control who can ride in the car with a newly licensed driver.

For my son we have slowed things down a bit.

He does not have a job and can't drive to school until his Junior year and even that is not a guarantee. Because of the size of the student body (4000 students) parking comes at a premium and Juniors have to participate in a lottery for a parking permit. In years past only about 30-40% of those that apply as a Junior are granted a parking permit. You have to have your actual license before entering the lottery which is held in July.

So our plan is to make him wait until July and hope he gets a permit. If he does not get a permit then we will end up paying the increased auto insurance premiums for someone who will likely not drive since his only interest at the moment is getting to and from school.

 

[Floridaman999]

15 1/2

 

[kdonnel]

15 1/2

What state lets kids get their license that early?

Edited to add:

I searched Google and found https://www.verywellfamily.com/driving-age-by-state-2611172

So either NM or SC.

SD allows it as early at 14 and a half. I guess there is very little traffic in SD.

 

[Floridaman999]

What state lets kids get their license that early?

Sorry, I saw the learners permit part and didn't see the NOT part. They were all 16.

 

[CarolAnn856]

17 is the youngest NJ allows teens to get a licence. Our son got his right on his 17th birthday, and our daughter is scheduled to do the same, although it may have to be put off a week or so since she may have rehearsals for the spring musical that day.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

I live in the Los Angeles area, and my kids didn't get their licenses until 18 (oldest-son), and 21 (youngest-daughter). My daughter didn't get hers until she had to drive. Until then she was happy with being ferried around by me and her friends. I was 16 when I got mine, and their dad 15-1/2. I figure they didn't feel the need since we only had one car and couldn't afford to buy another (even used).

 

[Gumbo4x4]

DD got hers at about 16.5. Would have been sooner, but she wasn’t a confident driver & then failed her driving test twice. She’s 18 now & still isn’t confident driving new places. Both my nephews got theirs on their 16th birthdays. Hopefully, DD2 will do the same.

 

[disykat]

Both of our kids got their licences at 16. For me, it was mostly about them having more years to practice before leaving home. They didn't have their own vehicles and took the bus to school, but it was still much more convenient to have them able to drive themselves to activities, their part time jobs, etc.

I obviously don't know your child, but for some young people who are sort of homebodies, more time to practice might be a good thing. I have a niece and a nephew who didn't learn to drive until 18 or over. Both of them (to varying degrees) became kind of fearful and had to be nagged/forced to do it.

 

[mousefan73]

I never realized some states were older than 16! NJ. For example. Wonder if things changed since the 80s. Inwent to HS in IL. Basically everyone had Drivers Ed their sophomore year. Permit and all. Once you hit 16. You the hours, went to DL place and took test then liscense.

 

[Hrhpd]

The day they turned 16. 4am daily swim practice made it a priority of ours to get the kids driving and get them their own cars.

 

[MrsJackSparrow4Life]

My daughter is 17 and I still haven’t allowed her to get her license. Her grades are awful and she doesn’t have the maturity to handle driving IMO. Once she is 18 she can get her license on her own as long as she is willing to take on all the costs.

 

[bigbabyblues]

DS18 got his license about 2 months after he was eligible; he was 16 plus a couple months. Insurance rates for a 16-yo boy in Ohio are crazy. He does have a car, because it is far easier with him playing sports for him to have a vehicle to drive. He does not have a job but we require him to maintain a certain GPA. DS15.5 has his permit, he got it about 3 weeks after he was eligible. I don't know if he will be allowed to get his license when he is just 16 or not, it will depend on how responsible he is. He is doing well with his driving so far, according to DH (I haven't ridden with him).

 

[clori]

16.5 the first month it was allowed for my 18 year old. I live in a more urban area with public transportation. Parking at the high school is fairly non existent in terms of finding parking. There are plenty of kids that get a license at 16.5 but there are plenty of kids who don't get a license until there is a reason to past high school graduation.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

On the insurance thing, ours did not change when DD got her permit. The rates did jump when she got her license. So, if you’re holding off allowing a permit, I would advise against that. Holding off on the license is another thing altogether.

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

My parents made me get my license when I was 16 lol. I went to boarding school so very few people had cars (only the day students) so it wasn’t a big deal to me and I kind of hated driving. Whenever I was home after driver’s ed when I had my permit, my parents refused to go anywhere with me or take me anywhere unless I drove. I was quite content not practicing and not driving.

I guess after 16 years of carting me around they’d had enough haha. I’m not sure when I would have gotten a license on my own if left to my choice. I couldn’t have a car freshman year in college and didn’t totally need it in college since all my friends had cars. After that I moved abroad so I may not have actually gotten my license until I was 27. Funny enough I’m a total car person now.

 

[Hikergirl]

I never "let" them, I pretty much forced them as soon as they were able- 16 1/2.
I wanted them to have enough experience driving by the time they graduated HS because there was no way I was carting their behinds to college.

 

[EscalatorKid]

My first child was very interested in getting her drivers license. She got her permit a few days after her 15th birthday and got her drivers license at the exact one year and one day point allowed. It was exciting for her and my wife and I until we realized by how much our auto insurance premium would be impacted.

My daughter wanted to get her license as soon as possible because of some of the other young drive rules in Georgia. There are several 6 month count downs that control who can ride in the car with a newly licensed driver.

For my son we have slowed things down a bit.

He does not have a job and can't drive to school until his Junior year and even that is not a guarantee. Because of the size of the student body (4000 students) parking comes at a premium and Juniors have to participate in a lottery for a parking permit. In years past only about 30-40% of those that apply as a Junior are granted a parking permit. You have to have your actual license before entering the lottery which is held in July.

So our plan is to make him wait until July and hope he gets a permit. If he does not get a permit then we will end up paying the increased auto insurance premiums for someone who will likely not drive since his only interest at the moment is getting to and from school.

It is my understanding that insurance premiums can rise just having a child of driving age in the house, regardless of whether or not they have a permit or license. (Obviously, state rules and companies may vary, but just having teenagers of driving age is a risk for insurers. My mom's jumped a little when I turned 16 and again when my sister turned 16.)

I was allowed when I was 17, but primarily because I was born mid-December and my mom wasn't about to teach me to drive in the snow. So I got my permit after I turned 16 and driver's license in the Spring of my 17th year.

I wouldn't hold out because the longer your kid is licensed, the better off they will be in the long run, especially with regard to credit rating, insurance rates, etc. It would also be a good idea to make him get the experience and practice in driving so that he's able to drive safely and know how to respond in a given situation. Eventually, unless he's living in a big city with great public transit, he will HAVE TO drive.

My sister didn't have a desire to drive anywhere, but my mother MADE her learn and practice in many situations so that she could be better prepared. My mom wasn't about to drive us everywhere into adulthood, so the sooner we learned to drive and be independent, the better. (The runs to the store and other errands were added benefits, lol)

 

[tvguy]

The day they turned 16. 4am daily swim practice made it a priority of ours to get the kids driving and get them their own cars.

Pretty much the same here. We have had a spare car since before our oldest was born, so there was a car available and it was SOOOOOO helpful to us for them to be able to get themselves to school and sports.
Several of my co-workers have driving age kids, and their kids refuse to take driver's education or driver's training. They have no interest in driving. I hear that is not an uncommon view with teens now. They'd rather walk, ride a bike, take the bus......or have mom and dad drive them!

 

[RedAngie]

Older DD got her license in Delaware when she was almost 17. She got a permit in California at 15 1/2, turned 16 there, but never went for her road test before we moved to Delaware. By the time she got around to it, after starting all over with a new Delaware permit, she was almost 17.

Younger DD didn't get her license until she was 18 and done with high school. It's not that I didn't "let" her; unlike most kids, she wasn't all that enthusiastic about getting one. I almost had to force her to get it because I wasn't about to keep chauffeuring her around after high school.

Yes, in New Jersey it was 17, at least when I was younger there. You could get your permit on your 17th birthday. I don't know if there was a minimum wait time until you could get a full license. I got my permit a few days after I turned 17, practiced with my father, and had my license within two months.

 

[tzolkin]

Oldest was 19. Summer between first and second year of college.

She did take drivers ed and had her permit in high school, but there was really no need for her to drive and she didn’t have the money for a car so we couldn’t see the sense in paying the insurance until she was actually going to use a license.

Middle daughter is a different kind of personality. She’s already taking drivers ed now (14) and will probably be more proactive about getting a car/license while still in high school.