If the insurance company ever needed a poster child for inexperienced teen drivers, Ethan could be that child. He had his first wreck before he turned 16. He had his 2nd one a few months later. And…*sigh. Well, his third one was just a year ago. Fortunately, they were all very minor. Expensive. But minor. The first two were caused from just not paying attention. Pure and simple. The third one — well, it very well could have stemmed from inexperience. He wasn’t speeding. He was paying attention. But, he came around a curve, and the sun hit his line of vision, and he sideswiped a sign. A more experienced driver probably could have avoided that happening. We have the same insurance company we had had for 25 years. But, part of Ethan’s “consequences” when this last accident happened was that he was to go around town, and get quotes from insurance companies — for coverage on him. He asked if he could get a auto insurance online quote — which was fine, but that he still need to go talk to these insurance agents, face to face.

He got quotes, and I think a dose of reality. It made him aware of just what all of this was going to cost him, and that maybe he had better be a little more attentive, a little more careful, and try to get some experience — accident free — under his belt. So far, so good. His last accident was Labor Day weekend last year. So, we are coming up a year, accident free. And you can see it in his attitude, and his actions. Inexperience is such a dangerous thing. But, unfortunately, to become experience, you have to go through that phase of being inexperienced.