From Permit to License: Teaching Teen Drivers Responsibility, Insurance, and First Jobs

Getting a driver’s license is exciting for teenagers, but for parents, it comes with a whole new level of responsibility, expectations, and financial reality. In this episode of Rollin’ With the Dolans, Patrick and Tamekia discuss the transition from permit to license with their teenagers and the conversations every family eventually has to face.

They talk about insurance costs, contributing financially, first jobs, entrepreneurship, and why teens shouldn’t be too picky when starting out in the workforce. The discussion also covers setting boundaries for new drivers, creating responsibility before freedom, and helping teenagers understand that adult decisions come with real consequences.

As parents of four teenagers, Patrick and Tamekia share their honest perspective on balancing safety, independence, accountability, and preparing kids for the real world, one step at a time.

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Transcript

Welcome to Rollin’ With the Dolans. I’m Patrick Dolan. And I’m Tamekia Dolan. Our podcast focuses on the joys and challenges of blending families, our interracial marriage, parenting children of multiple ages, and the journey of entrepreneurship. We share our daily life experiences with a positive but real perspective.

And today’s topic is parenting children, and specifically getting their license.

You mean going from permit to license?

So we have four teenagers. One of them has their license, and they’ve been driving for about a year and a half now.

Correct, yeah.

And we have two that have their permit, and one is a couple years behind, or a year and a half behind. But nonetheless, there’s a lot to talk about and a lot of expectations to set.

So we have two with permits, and we’re having conversations with them about what that looks like going from a permit to a license. Their expectations, our expectations, and how they will contribute financially, right?

Yeah, because as soon as you go from permit to license, there’s a cost for insurance. They hit the insurance, and why even hit this insurance if we’re not ready to pay for it?

And who should be the ones paying for it? Because we feel like they should be invested just as much as we have to be invested, right?

Yeah, some people just think it’s as easy as, “Oh, I’m gonna go get a license.”

Yeah, it’s not that easy. There’s actually more to it. There’s the financial commitment, and then there’s the worrying about whether they’re actually ready to even drive to the grocery store, let alone anywhere else.

That’s true. So I’m the driving instructor, and I have to report back to Mr. Dolan after each driving lesson to see if the kids are on the right track to being able to go from permit to license.

Or even to the point where I’ll drive with them, because you do all the basic entry-level instruction, and once they’re a little more advanced, then I’ll drive with them.

Yeah, correct.

So what does the conversation need to sound like when we’re talking to them about going from permit to license? There’s one in particular that really thinks she’s just gonna be able to start driving any given day. “Oh, I’m just gonna go get…” And I’m like, wait a minute. There’s a lot more to this than you think. What are you gonna be driving? Who’s gonna be paying the insurance?

And all of that. They still don’t really get the fact that when you move later into life, there are consequences to every decision you make. There’s more involved, more money, more people impacted, more everything. I think this is one of the first times they’re really starting to understand that.

And then the other thing is, okay, if you’re getting a license, you have to pay at least part of it. So the one who does have a license today, he pays one-third of the insurance cost. But that gets into what kind of job do you get? Do you get a job to pay for it? We’re struggling with trying to make sure they’re aggressively trying to get a job and understand that sometimes you need to take any job.

Yeah, one of our teenagers is open to getting a job but is being very picky about what kind of job they should have. So I said, “Okay, you don’t have to get a job at McDonald’s or Taco Bell or Burger King,” because they do not want to work in fast food, “but you still have to be able to provide some money toward your insurance and also save toward a car.”

So how picky do you think teenagers should be when finding a job?

When you are broke, you need to not be picky. What do you think?

I agree with that. I think there are a lot of jobs you may not want, but you still need them for the experience, too.

Yeah, because there are a lot of things you can learn from working at McDonald’s.

What skills do you think you can learn from working at McDonald’s?

A process. Everything. How do you handle food? How do you shut down at night? There are so many things you can learn.

Customers.

Yeah, so many things. Almost any job you get, you’re going to learn something new. A lot of people think there’s a dream job out there, but even if you find that dream job, there are still going to be things you don’t like about it.

Yeah. And there are two of our teenagers who are entrepreneurs, which we’re happy about, and we obviously support that. But we also think you need to work for someone else, too, right?

Yeah, definitely. You have to experience a lot in life, and having a basic job is part of that. It’s part of growing.

Yeah, growing is a good word.

So it comes back to our philosophy when it comes to driving. And what is that? Recap it.

Going from a permit to a license comes with financial obligations that you also have to meet. You can’t expect us to pay the entire insurance amount. You can’t expect us to pay the entire car amount. I’ve talked to a lot of clients, and every family is different. Some parents pay for the car, some make their kids pay for the whole amount, and some make them contribute. For us, we’re going to make them contribute, which means they need to get a job.

Yep. They have to have some skin in the game and some type of financial responsibility as part of moving on. Because now that you’re 16, life is only going to come with more financial responsibility and more things you have to do.

Yeah, because they want more.

And the other thing we haven’t even addressed is that we have a short leash when it comes to driving, as far as where they can go. Some people think, “Oh, okay, I got my license. I’m free.” We don’t do that.

Yeah, which is good. We’ll say, “Okay, you can drive to and from work. You can drive to and from school,” and that’s about it. Not, “Okay, you’re gonna go to the mall. You’re gonna go here. You’re gonna go there.” We’re very restrictive until they show they’re comfortable and familiar with the basics first.

Yeah. Slow baby steps, but it makes us feel like they’re safer because they’ve had a lot of driving experience instead of just throwing them out on the roads and highways immediately.

Yeah. Okay. Anything else you want to add?

I think that’s it. Pretty short, sweet, simple discussion today.

All right. So until next time, find us wherever you found us. Hit that like button or favorite button or whatever it may be. Comment as well, because we love that.

But regardless, until next time, have an amazing day.

I would say productive day.

All right, bye.

Okay, bye.