getting a driver's permit

My 16-year-old wants to get a driver's permit. Has anyone been through this process recently? He's taken the high school course, we've read the DMV information, and we are still a bit confused.

Is it necessary for him to get an additional six hours of instruction or can we just go to the DMV and get the permit?

6 hours of instruction required

If you wait a bit (I can't remember the age required), you can just get the permit without the formal instruction.

iwasmim said:
If you wait a bit (I can't remember the age required), you can just get the permit without the formal instruction.

You can get a learner's permit without the 6 hours of driving instruction at age 17 (with parental consent + passing the written + vision test)

Thanks, folks; confirms what we thought.

Might anyone have a recommendation on a good driving instructor?

I thought they needed to take a test for the learner's permit. In the same boat. Where do we get 6 hours of instruction?

NizhoniGrrrl said:
I thought they needed to take a test for the learner's permit. In the same boat. Where do we get 6 hours of instruction?

Yes, they do. If they take the classroom portion in school (as is the case for all CHS students), the test is given as part of that and if they pass (minimum score of 80), they get the certificate they can take to the driving school to take the 6 hour behind-the-wheel class and receive the permit. Otherwise, they must (re)take the written test at DMV first.

I've never really heard anything bad about any of the local driving schools. (Although I'd probably want to avoid whichever one was connected to the horrible accident in Warwick last week; they had four students in the car at once in that one, so I would ask about student-instructor ratio. I always thought those behind-the-wheel sessions were one-on-one.)

We used Don Tre Driving School and liked it very much.

sac said:
I've never really heard anything bad about any of the local driving schools. (Although I'd probably want to avoid whichever one was connected to the horrible accident in Warwick last week; they had four students in the car at once in that one, so I would ask about student-instructor ratio. I always thought those behind-the-wheel sessions were one-on-one.)
We used Don Tre Driving School and liked it very much.

It was a Summer school class, so was likely run by the district. Years ago, many HIgh schools offered the behind the wheel portion of driver education as well as the classroom instruction.

Another vote for Don Tree

Another vote for Don Tre

Does anyone know when you need to add your teen driver to your auto insurance policy? Is it when they start driving your car(s) with their learner's permit (age 16), or only once they get a probationary license at 17?

jasper said:
Does anyone know when you need to add your teen driver to your auto insurance policy? Is it when they start driving your car(s) with their learner's permit (age 16), or only once they get a probationary license at 17?

Our insurance company told us we didn't need to do it until our son got a probationary license. We didn't add him while he drove under the learner's permit.

One more question on the GDL decals. I found this little nugget of information in a related FAQ:

Q: My son or daughter shares the same vehicle with me. What should I do with the decals when I
am driving the vehicle?

A: Any other drivers not required to display the GDL decals should remove them prior to operating the
vehicle.

So do people seriously put on and then take off these decals every time their kid drives the car? That seems like a lot of maintenance, and something easy to forget.

mjh said:

jasper said:
Does anyone know when you need to add your teen driver to your auto insurance policy? Is it when they start driving your car(s) with their learner's permit (age 16), or only once they get a probationary license at 17?

Our insurance company told us we didn't need to do it until our son got a probationary license. We didn't add him while he drove under the learner's permit.

Thanks, mjh. I'm assuming that's standard, and not insurance-company-specific, no? Or should I just call my insurance company?

mjh said:

jasper said:
Does anyone know when you need to add your teen driver to your auto insurance policy? Is it when they start driving your car(s) with their learner's permit (age 16), or only once they get a probationary license at 17?

Our insurance company told us we didn't need to do it until our son got a probationary license. We didn't add him while he drove under the learner's permit.

Same here, so I assume that's consistent across insurers (probably per state regs.) But I would still call the insurance company just to be sure.

Thanks, sac.

Any thoughts on those red decals? I read through the Wikipedia page on Kyleigh's law, and I have to say that it strikes me as a little overreaching. If nothing else, there shouldn't be a fee for these decals, and they should have just been issued with the permit; we pay enough to register our cars and I can't say I'm terribly motivated to schlep over to the DMV to buy them.

I don't know how much it is enforced these days, but when that law first passed a few years ago, some local police departments 'staked out' high school parking areas and issued citations. (Not sure if this happened in SOMA or not.)

Re getting the decals, our drivers ed instructor asked how many we needed, took our money for them and picked them up for us along with the permit

jasper said:
Does anyone know when you need to add your teen driver to your auto insurance policy? Is it when they start driving your car(s) with their learner's permit (age 16), or only once they get a probationary license at 17?

Once they get a probationary license. As for schools we used Mike Mallory at Pro City and were very happy. He seems to be very popular around these parts

Thanks, everyone. That DMV really knows how to stick it to you. I guess we might as well buy them now, and try to remember to put them on and then take them off both front and back plates EVERY TIME OUR KID DRIVES THE CAR. Why don't we just put a big sign in the window saying "young, newbie, driver - easy pickings"? It's about the dumbest law I've heard of.

Meanwhile, according to something I just read, the decals are attached with velcro - sounds similar to the EZ Pass tags - which means you need to buy two pairs if you want your teen to be able to drive either of your cars. They should include these as part of the driver's ed classes at the high school.

matb, boy jasper just finished up his lessons with Mike. I'm going to give him a call to ask about the decals.

I didn't see any reason to remove the red decals, and drove with them for the years we needed them. I don't think the law is a good idea, but having the decals on my plates didn't cause any inconvenience. I think when we bought them (at the time of the road test), they were $5 for four, or enough for two cars.

jasper said:
Thanks, everyone. That DMV really knows how to stick it to you. I guess we might as well buy them now, and try to remember to put them on and then take them off both front and back plates EVERY TIME OUR KID DRIVES THE CAR. Why don't we just put a big sign in the window saying "young, newbie, driver - easy pickings"? It's about the dumbest law I've heard of.
Meanwhile, according to something I just read, the decals are attached with velcro - sounds similar to the EZ Pass tags - which means you need to buy two pairs if you want your teen to be able to drive either of your cars. They should include these as part of the driver's ed classes at the high school.
matb, boy jasper just finished up his lessons with Mike. I'm going to give him a call to ask about the decals.

We just got one for each car and never took them off once we put them on, until the kids' licenses were no longer probationary. Too much trouble and the risk of losing them ...

I read somewhere that they should not be on the car when an adult driver is driving, but I guess we'll just leave them on and be done with it; we can always just say we forgot to take them off if we get cited for driving while pretending to be a teenager. Considering Mr. Jasper's full head of white hair, I don't think there's much room for confusion. I, on the other hand, could pass for 20. ; - )

jasper said:
I read somewhere that they should not be on the car when an adult driver is driving, but I guess we'll just leave them on and be done with it; we can always just say we forgot to take them off if we get cited for driving while pretending to be a teenager. Considering Mr. Jasper's full head of white hair, I don't think there's much room for confusion. I, on the other hand, could pass for 20. ; - )

I think it says that somewhere, but it is widely ignored. I would have been tempted to ignore the whole thing and not bother with the decals at all until I heard about the stake-outs at some school parking lots.

I think this decal law is pretty stupid and obviously pretty widely ignored by law enforcement as well as drivers so even if it was well-intentioned, it is not achieving its objectives from what I can tell.

Anyone know of a large vacant (even if on Sundays only) parking lot to let a first timer get a feel for the car in the absence of other cars?

(Don't tell anyone, but maybe even before they have a permit...)

The Livingston Mall lot, or the lot above Trader Joe's is where we went for parallel parking practice.

n00b said:
Anyone know of a large vacant (even if on Sundays only) parking lot to let a first timer get a feel for the car in the absence of other cars?
(Don't tell anyone, but maybe even before they have a permit...)

High School Lots.

On the decals - we had them on our cars, but eventually took them off. Never moved them between drivers. We thought they marked the car as a newbie driver. Never used them for our third driver.

Do I correctly understand that a permit applicant needs to have six hours behind-the-wheel experience as part of the application process?

It seems counter intuitive.

Thanks for any help.

TomR

Tom_R said:
Do I correctly understand that a permit applicant needs to have six hours behind-the-wheel experience as part of the application process?
It seems counter intuitive.
Thanks for any help.
TomR

First they have to pass the written test, which they take in school. Then they have to take six hours of lessons with a licensed driving instructor. Then they are able get the learner's permit that enables them to drive with another licensed driver over 21. (I think it's 21.)

They only need the 6 hours of professional instruction if the student is younger than 17. We used Kess Driving School. They made it very easy. They take the student to the DMV to file the interim paperwork (I forget what it's called) that enables them to drive with the instructor. After the six hours, they give them whatever paperwork they need for the road test.