Family Mile Markers Part IV: Sharing the driveway
Written by The Clearcover Team | 3 minute read
According to Pew Research and the Washington Post, US families are moving in together, with more and more households containing multiple generations: grandparents, parents, and kids. Our recent Family Mile Markers survey data supports this, too—nearly 1/3rd of our survey-takers have shared a residence with their parents or the parents of their spouse or partner within the last five years.
So what does this trend mean for our car insurance and financial decisions? Since we’re customer-focused at Clearcover, we decided to ask you. And here’s what we discovered:
When it comes to finances, U.S. families work together
According to our survey data, adult children are stepping in to help the older generation take care of financial decisions: 35% of our survey respondents claimed to manage at least some of the finances for their parents or the parents of their spouse/partner. And the financial support goes both ways, apparently: a recent Merrill Lynch survey showed that nearly 8 in 10 parents have given some form of financial support to their adult children.
In addition, many families combine car insurance policies across generations. 65% of parents report having their children on their auto insurance policy. And 1 in 5 of our respondents put both their children and their parents (or the parents of their partner) on their car insurance policy—a true multi-generation bundle.
Why are families combining car insurance policies across generations? 33% of our survey-takers said that it was easier to add family members to their car insurance policy because they already manage other aspects of their parents’ finances.
But there’s another big reason.
Policy bundling means cost-savings
Saving money seems to be the biggest reason for multi-generation policy bundling. 60% of our survey-takers stated that they added their parents (or their in-laws) to their own policy because it allowed all parties to take advantage of bundled cost savings. And 40% of respondents said that their parents’ inability to pay for insurance was a contributing factor to the decision to include them on the family policy.
The money factor affected decisions about when to take kids off the family policy, too. The portion of our respondents said that they extended their original deadline for removing their young adult children from their policy—and 56% of those respondents said they did it because it saved money to keep their kids on the policy.
New drivers shop around—then stick around
When the younger generation shops around for an insurance policy, it’s no surprise that their first option is often their parents’ insurance company. Although 3 out of 4 young adults compared insurance prices before selecting a policy, 60% of children stayed with their family’s insurance carrier when they bought their own coverage. It’s likely not a factor of loyalty though --price and convenience usually win out.
And even though the younger generation is known for shopping online, 45% of our respondents’ kids bought their first standalone policy through an agent. Meanwhile, 26% bought through a price comparison site, while only 11% bought their coverage directly from a carrier. As our earlier survey showed, today’s car insurance customer isn’t ready to go fully digital with their insurance experience—even young drivers want the option to talk to a real person.
Could I save money by putting my whole family on a Clearcover auto insurance policy?
Very likely! If you’re a customer, the best way to find out is to give us a ring at 855-444-1875 or chat us up.
And if you’re not already a Clearcover customer, you can get a quote in 5-10 minutes. You’ll be able to easily add all your family members to your quote—and, hopefully, save significantly on better car insurance coverage.
This article is part IV of Family Mile Markers, a new survey-based Clearcover series exploring how family relationships affect our driving, financial, and car insurance decisions. Read Part I: 3 Ways Your Finances Change After Having a Baby , Part II: What do new parents want in a car?, or Part III: How safe are teen drivers on the road?
