Need help acquiring auto insurance for adult daughter, please

Hi, all, I need some advice here.  DD#2 is having trouble getting insured.

Through a combination of circumstances, she let both the registration and insurance lapse on her 2006 Impala.

She was not driving the car during that period, which is why they lapsed.

The car was on our State Farm policy through November 2022, but when I moved it off that policy she failed to pick it up with her renters insurance.  As I said, the IN registration was also lapsed and the car was basically parked.

During its history with State Farm there were no claims.  To my knowledge her driving record is clean.  She's over 25.

She has since moved to Maryland and is attempting to insure and register the car, but no one will write her a new policy since the old one lapsed.  It may be relevant to note that the policy it used to be on was in my name, with her as an operator.  Also, I directed my company to take the car off, it did not lapse for non-payment, nor was it dropped by State Farm.

I gave her the names of several independent brokers near her MD address.  Apparently she called them today and was not successful.

I do not know if she tried The General or any similar companies that cater to high-risk clients.  I will start there tonight.

Her credit score may be an issue, because she doesn't have a credit card and she is currently unemployed.  We were planning on being parental and paying her premium until she gets back on solid footing, but that point is moot if she can't even get anyone to insure her.

So, what are our options?  What's our best strategy?

Thanks.

Call an agency that can pull rates from all the insurers.  My wife's cousin does this.  You are going to need a knowledgeable agent to dodge this minefield.

AnthonyGS (Forum Supporter) said:

Call an agency that can pull rates from all the insurers.  My wife's cousin does this.  You are going to need a knowledgeable agent to dodge this minefield.

This is your best bet. My mother works for an agency in NY that does this and she has been able to find something for pretty much everyone.  I imagine there are similar brokers in Maryland. 

I believe she tried several independent brokers - at least that's who I recommended to her.  I will confirm.

I don't know if these folks had access to all the insurers, but I know they are not affiliated with one particular company.

If she can not get through the online guys she's going to have to go through the Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund.  That's what it is for, but it is $$$$$$$$$$

https://www.maifinsuranceonline.com/

How did the non registered, uninsured vehicle get to Maryland?  They will ask.

It actually got to Maryland on the non-expired IN tags.  Once there it was parked, and both tags and insurance lapsed.

We've pretty much resigned ourselves to throwing money at a variety of problems, this one included.  If we have to pay through the nose for The General for 6 months or however long, so be it.

Thanks for that reference - I will look into it.

In reply to Duke :

Do you have a car you can lend her for a few months while you then take the Impala back to DE and register/insure it to yourself?  After that DE registration is complete consider resending the Impala back to MD and register/insure in her name.   

Probably the easiest and cheapest is to pick it back up on your policy and in your name. 

Put plates and insurance on it and then sell it to her for a dollar in 6 months or so. 

In reply to John Welsh :

Well, that is a fallback option too, though I probably wouldn't lend her one of mine.

I would more likely borrow a dolly and go pick it up from MD with the IN title (get her to sign it over) and then register and insure it in my name in DE.

But what I can't do is insure it in her name unless she has a DE drivers license at my address. I assume I can list her as an operator as if she was away at college, though she isn't).  But MD only gives you 60 days to transfer everything over, including license, once you move in state.

In reply to Toyman! :

My primary concern with that is whether they would still not start a new policy on it in her name at that point, since it would be registered / insured in my name in the interim.

We'll try Shaq tonight and see if he solves the issue, even at some expense.

Shaq wasn't interested.

Haven't closed a final deal yet, but we did successfully get online quotes from Elephant ($$$), Root ($$$$), and Bristol West ($$$$.5).

Fingers crossed.

Good luck. I never realized this was a thing. Do they think she operated it without coverage? 

What if you leave the country for some reason and come back in a year?

OHSCrifle said:

Good luck. I never realized this was a thing. Do they think she operated it without coverage? 

What if you leave the country for some reason and come back in a year?

Storage insurance.

I've recently heard done bad things about State Farm - is that some of the issue?

AnthonyGS (Forum Supporter) said:

OHSCrifle said:

Good luck. I never realized this was a thing. Do they think she operated it without coverage? 

What if you leave the country for some reason and come back in a year?

Storage insurance.

Or plain comprehensive without liability or collision. It's cheap and covers the vehicle while parked, but nothing else.

Datsun310Guy said:

I've recently heard done bad things about State Farm - is that some of the issue?

I think they lost some money recently, but I don't think they're unsound. But our agent said they tightened up their approvals in March or April.

Duke said:

Datsun310Guy said:

I've recently heard done bad things about State Farm - is that some of the issue?

I think they lost some money recently, but I don't think they're unsound. But our agent said they tightened up their approvals in March or April.

 

Roof guy said they left CA and FL and will be leaving 5 more states soon and they are awful to work with.  Who knows. 

In reply to Datsun310Guy :

Could be. As an insured I've never had a problem with them, but I don't live in a hot button insurance state.

In reply to Datsun310Guy :

I think the hurricanes are beating the hell out of them so they are trying to limit their exposure in storm-prone areas. They dropped my parents after 30 years because they have a large house on the coast. They are required to carry a certain amount of assets to cover the property they insure and I think the numbers weren't adding up. 

I've used them for almost 20 years and never had a problem. The one claim I had went flawlessly. 

Does she still have a license in your state?  Even if only for a few months putting her on your policy would let her answer the questions new insurers ask favorably.  

In reply to porschenut :

Unfortunately, no, she doesn't.

Florida homeowners insurance is in crisis - both due to storms as well as excessive litigation due to shady roof contractors. It's ugly here right now. 

Wonder if www.flexcar.com would be an option. 

Datsun310Guy said:

I've recently heard done bad things about State Farm - is that some of the issue?

Most big insurance companies make their money from investing the premiums in the market, not just premium vs claims payout. 

I'm actually happy I was able to just switch everything back to State Farm. The house has a higher deductible, but the coverage is much better for $100 more per year. And they were able to drop the two cars almost $60/month vs GEICO. 

Well, we secured a fairly expensive liability-only policy with Elephant, but at least it is in her name.  When we went through an aggregator, Elephant came back saying they would write a full-coverage policy, but when it came time to close the deal online, it wouldn't.  I called them and talked to an actual person who indicated they could do liability-only.

So we've pre-paid 6 months to get her covered.  In 6 months, or maybe next year, we can see where things stand, and shop it out.

Thanks for everyone's advice!