How are you insured while you're learning how to drive?

Getting your G1 learner’s permit licence is an exciting time. Getting behind the wheel of a car means a new level of freedom, and marks one of your first moments into true adulthood! However, with that freedom comes a whole lot of responsibility. This includes being a safe and alert driver, and following all the rules of the road. One of those rules being that you have the proper insurance needed to operate a vehicle. But how do you ensure that you have the coverage you need while learning how to drive? Keep reading to find out!

Parameters of a G1 licence

To obtain your G1 licence you must be 16 years old and pass a written test as well as an eye exam.

Before we look at how you are insured as a G1 driver, let’s go over what restrictions come with a G1 licence.

• Must be accompanied by a G licence driver with at least 4 years of experience. If they are under 2,1 their blood alcohol level must be 0%, if they are over 21 it can be no higher than .05%.
• You must have a blood alcohol level of 0%.
• You are not permitted to drive between the hours of 12am and 5am.
• You are not permitted to drive on any 400 series highways or expressways, including the Gardiner, DVP, or QEW.

Your parents/guardian’s vehicle

Luckily, because you only have your G1, you do not have to have your own insurance, nor do you need to be listed under your parent’s policy. While even though you are a new driver, the above restrictions help to eliminate a significant amount of risk that you would pose to an insurer. So, you are free to learn with your parent’s vehicle without needing to be put onto their policy.

You are really able to learn with any properly insured vehicle (failing to ensure that the vehicle has insurance is illegal), however make sure you have permission to do so. When you are learning to drive with a learner’s permit,  the owner of the auto policy attached to the vehicle you are driving takes on the risk of you behind the wheel. So, if your best friend’s older sibling volunteers to teach you to drive, make sure the owner of the car knows you are doing so!

Your driver’s education vehicle

Opting to sign up for a driver’s education course, has a number of benefits. While there is a cost associated with doing the course, you will see a discount on your auto insurance when you are added to a policy. Additionally, you will only have to wait 8 months to test your G2 licence rather than the standard 12 months.

When you are completing the in-car portion of your course, you are covered by the insurance that your instructor or driver’s ed company has on their vehicles. They have tons of young drivers getting behind the wheel of their cars, so you can best believe that they ensure their vehicles are properly insured.