Teens and vehicle fuel

[Bootsie]

We have paid for gas for one child.  The other child has not had a drivers license (we pay for friends' gas sometimes for places that child has gone.)

 

I think it is important for kids to learn to budget and choose.  Exactly how that looks can vary.  One approach can be you have an allowance of $X and you must pay for gas, clothing, etc.  Another is to reimburse up to a certain amount for each category (which gets more difficult to monitor, especially when it is gas and you might ask him to pick up an item or run an errand on the way).

 

If he is driving 30 minutes each way to VoTech 5 days a week and to a job, I would make sure that I did have a good handle on how much gas it is taking for those trips.  If it is 20 miles to VoTech and the car gets 20 miles per gallon, that is 2 gallons a day just for VoTech driving.  If gas costs $2.25 where you live, that would be $4.50 per day to get to VoTech (or $90 per month).  If the car gets 30 miles per gallon, it would be $3 worth of gas per day for VoTech; that would be $60 each month. 

[AmandaVT]

I always had to pay for my own gas, but gas was less than $1/gallon when I was in high school. 

 

My friend's mom came up with a good compromise. She paid for 1 tank per week. She gave my friend a Shell card that was to be used only for gas once a week (Tuesdays because gas was $.06 cheaper/gallon then) and anything else, she had to pay for. I remember before I got my license, all of us emptying out our pockets to chip in for gas until fill up day.

[Scarlett]

We have paid for gas for one child.  The other child has not had a drivers license (we pay for friends' gas sometimes for places that child has gone.)

 

I think it is important for kids to learn to budget and choose.  Exactly how that looks can vary.  One approach can be you have an allowance of $X and you must pay for gas, clothing, etc.  Another is to reimburse up to a certain amount for each category (which gets more difficult to monitor, especially when it is gas and you might ask him to pick up an item or run an errand on the way).

 

If he is driving 30 minutes each way to VoTech 5 days a week and to a job, I would make sure that I did have a good handle on how much gas it is taking for those trips.  If it is 20 miles to VoTech and the car gets 20 miles per gallon, that is 2 gallons a day just for VoTech driving.  If gas costs $2.25 where you live, that would be $4.50 per day to get to VoTech (or $90 per month).  If the car gets 30 miles per gallon, it would be $3 worth of gas per day for VoTech; that would be $60 each month. 

 

 

I did say 30 but it is actually 25....I counted up all his trips (both ways) to VoTech, his job and religious services and came up with 422 miles per week.  He gets 50 mpg.  Gas is $2 per gallon here, so I think my math is correct that equals just under $17 per week for gas for those miles.

[Scarlett]

I always had to pay for my own gas, but gas was less than $1/gallon when I was in high school. 

 

My friend's mom came up with a good compromise. She paid for 1 tank per week. She gave my friend a Shell card that was to be used only for gas once a week (Tuesdays because gas was $.06 cheaper/gallon then) and anything else, she had to pay for. I remember before I got my license, all of us emptying out our pockets to chip in for gas until fill up day.

 

 

Same here....I graduated high school in 1983 and I got my own car just before graduation.....I really have no memory of how we paid for anything because I worked, mom was trying to finish up college, and then I moved out in May as soon as I graduated.  I know she had no money, we were barely making it, so I am SURE I paid for my own gas. 

[samba]

We pay for gas for dd17 (12th grade). She is driving herself to classes, volleyball practices and youth group. These are all places that I would be driving her anyway (and I'd possibly use more gas because I would be dropping off, going home, picking up, back home . She is not going to the mall, hanging out with friends, etc. I am thrilled that I don't have to take her everywhere now. I'm too busy driving ds15 to his activities. Also, dd is careful with her limited income and will be contributing to college expenses.

[OneStepAtATime]

I did say 30 but it is actually 25....I counted up all his trips (both ways) to VoTech, his job and religious services and came up with 422 miles per week.  He gets 50 mpg.  Gas is $2 per gallon here, so I think my math is correct that equals just under $17 per week for gas for those miles.

He gets 50 mpg in his vehicle?  Goodness what is he driving?

[OneStepAtATime]

I am going to share a story that really impacted me.  A friend of mine was talking about how her parents handled transportation for her.  She had a lot of after school stuff in High School.  Her father told her that he and Mom would pay half of whatever she put in to buy her a car, they would cover her insurance as long as she exhibited safe driving practices (until she was working full time after college) and they would cover a set amount for gas every month.   They calculated how much she needed for school and activities.  Anything beyond that she either had to pay for herself or work off the cost of with helping her parents in specific tasks that needed doing but were not part of her chores.  

 

She said she was irritated at the time but came to realize how much it had helped her to be responsible for figuring out cost and to understand costs add up.  She was VERY careful to properly maintain her car because she had invested her own money.  She was also a lot more careful on when and where she drove so she wasn't making extra unneeded trips.  She felt she became more responsible.  She said it helped her tremendously in preparing to function as an adult and she is grateful her parents chose that route.  She also appreciated that it wasn't presented as a "suck it up buttercup" approach but as "We care and want you to have what you need so this is what we are willing to do."

[Scarlett]

He gets 50 mpg in his vehicle?  Goodness what is he driving?

 

 

A prius.  I want one.  Seriousy, I love that car.

[Jaybee]

I think your $20/week plan sounds more than fair. It's a little more than your estimated cost for needs, and it will help him learn to plan his trips more economically. Many years ago, we learned a lesson with our girls. They didn't mean to be careless with money, but we were very strapped. Once we gave them an allowance and said that was all we could contribute unless it was for running shoes (expensive) or other rare expenses, they became great bargain shoppers. They just hadn't needed to before then. Though we hadn't wanted to restrict them, once we did, we saw it was really for their own good, both then and for the future.

[OneStepAtATime]

A prius.  I want one.  Seriousy, I love that car.

:laugh:

 

On a side note, are you sure he is getting 50 mpg?  That isn't just what was stated on the sticker at the sale?  Has he tested that out with traffic, stop start, etc. ? FWIW, no car I have ever bought actually performed as well as advertised in daily driving.  I had to keep that in mind when budgeting for gas.

[Scarlett]

:laugh:

 

On a side note, are you sure he is getting 50 mpg?  That isn't just what was stated on the sticker at the sale?  Has he tested that out with traffic, stop start, etc. ? FWIW, no car I have ever bought actually performed as well as advertised in daily driving.  I had to keep that in mind when budgeting for gas.

 

 

No I haven't asked him lately.  It might be less than that....but probably at least 45-47.  He can learn to drive right and improve it too.  He knows that.

[ChocolateReignRemix]

If you have a teen still in school how much of their vehicle gas do you buy?

 

I have been paying 100% but I just calculated a months worth....he is spending over $120 in gas...I calculated all the places he has to go (including work) and I came up with about $67. He runs up and down the road all of the time. Is it unreasonable of me to tell him I will reimburse him for $20 per week and the rest is on him?

 

We are really struggling with the line between child/adult, my responsibilities vs his wants.

If you think he is being frivolous I see no issue with setting a budget.

[Ottakee]

And from my perspective this is insanely generous and luxurious.  I didn't get so much as a couple of bucks for ANYTHING at that age.

That was me so my perspective is a bit different.

 

When I turned 16 I bought my OWN car with my OWN money I had earned on my own babysitting (at $1/hour) and picking blueberries.  I had to pay my own repairs, my own insurance and my own gas......YEP, I paid for everything.  That included my gas driving to school (no bus service where we lived and we were 17 miles away from highschool), to work when I got a job in town, for recreation, etc.

 

I also paid for 90% of my clothes, 100% of my entertainment/eating out, almost all toiletries, etc.  My mom was a single parent and that was just how things were.  The thing is, I did not feel deprived at all as most of my friends (who were from 2 parent homes) were in the same situation.  Most of our parents were working class and we all started working on farms, babysitting, etc. by age 12, many starting at 10.

 

I really don't regret at all that life was that way.  I think we all learned a great deal of responsibility and financial management in our teens.

 

In your case, I think that $20/week is good and he can pay the rest.  You can always give him a bit more for special circumstances but him paying for his recreational driving is totally reasonable.

[Bootsie]

I did say 30 but it is actually 25....I counted up all his trips (both ways) to VoTech, his job and religious services and came up with 422 miles per week.  He gets 50 mpg.  Gas is $2 per gallon here, so I think my math is correct that equals just under $17 per week for gas for those miles.

 

If he is spending over $120 a month on gas and gas costs $2 per gallon: he is purchasing 60 gallons of gas per month.  If he gets 50 mpg, then he would be driving over 3000 miles per month. Is he really driving that many miles in an average month?

[SparklyUnicorn]

That was me so my perspective is a bit different.

 

When I turned 16 I bought my OWN car with my OWN money I had earned on my own babysitting (at $1/hour) and picking blueberries.  I had to pay my own repairs, my own insurance and my own gas......YEP, I paid for everything.  That included my gas driving to school (no bus service where we lived and we were 17 miles away from highschool), to work when I got a job in town, for recreation, etc.

 

I also paid for 90% of my clothes, 100% of my entertainment/eating out, almost all toiletries, etc.  My mom was a single parent and that was just how things were.  The thing is, I did not feel deprived at all as most of my friends (who were from 2 parent homes) were in the same situation.  Most of our parents were working class and we all started working on farms, babysitting, etc. by age 12, many starting at 10.

 

I really don't regret at all that life was that way.  I think we all learned a great deal of responsibility and financial management in our teens.

 

In your case, I think that $20/week is good and he can pay the rest.  You can always give him a bit more for special circumstances but him paying for his recreational driving is totally reasonable.

 

It's amazing to me that this was even possible though.  I worked A LOT.  I had to pay for my many of my needs/wants.  Despite all the working though, I never earned enough to afford a car as a teen (minimum wage or less per hour jobs).  Insurance rates in my area for one thing were just INSANE (they still are). 

[Joker]

My parents bought us cars and paid for the insurance and gas. This was in a small town and back when we could pump gas at the local station and just sign for it. My dad paid the bill at the end of each month and I don't think he ever really paid attention to how much each of us used.

 

Dh and I will not be buying cars but we will cover insurance and most gas. Ds and dd will just be sharing our extra car. We have two but I stay home and dh works from home so we don't need two.

 

If they want their own car when they move away and go to college, we will help some but they will have to come up with most of the money. It's one reason ds is looking at colleges close to home or in big cities with good public transportation.

[Ottakee]

It's amazing to me that this was even possible though.  I worked A LOT.  I had to pay for my many of my needs/wants.  Despite all the working though, I never earned enough to afford a car as a teen (minimum wage or less per hour jobs).  Insurance rates in my area for one thing were just INSANE (they still are). 

Well, we had 4 years to save and first car was $500 to buy.  Later on, Grandpa did give us a no interest loan for a better car but we did pay him back, every single penny.  My first job was $2.80 cents an hour, gas was 83 cents a gallon.

 

I wore cheap, limited clothes (I don't remember ever buying clothes at the mall as a teen), didn't go to movies more than 1-2 times a year, rarely ate out, even McDonalds, etc.  Basically we went to school, went to work (20-30 hours a week, more in the summer) and did free things.  We were just working class people (likely lower end of that) but we never were in NEED.  We weren't fashionable, we did work a lot, but we were never hungry or not clothed.

[Artichoke]

We share two vehicles between three people.  Dh and I pay for most of the gas, but dd will fill it up at her cost if she needs to.  If she gets the car on empty a couple of times in a row, she'll just mention it to us, and we'll reimburse her.   She does little recreational driving.  

[TravelingChris]

We pau for dd's gas.  She is in college and doesn't use much gas except when she comes home.  We live 4 hours away.  We also paid for her gas when she was in high school.  She used more gas then since she drove to the University and to co-op classes and to soccer practice, Venture Scouts, etc.

[sassenach]

We gave a gas allowance based on driving to school and a little extra to run family errands. Beyond that, she had to pay for her own leisure driving.

[Scarlett]

If he is spending over $120 a month on gas and gas costs $2 per gallon: he is purchasing 60 gallons of gas per month. If he gets 50 mpg, then he would be driving over 3000 miles per month. Is he really driving that many miles in an average month?

422 a week is strictly what is needed. I am too tired to do math tonight. 3000 would be a lot.

[DawnM]

We cover everything until our boys graduate from college -- a vehicle, fuel, insurance, maintenance.

 

Edited to add: Ours never had the time or desire to do a ton of driving around "just because." If he's doing that then I don't think it's wrong to not cover all his gas. To/from school or a part-time job and a little for going out with friends . . . yes.

 

This is us too.  I don't even know how much he is spending, but it isn't much.  Work is 5 miles each way and school is 1.5 miles each way.  I think we fill the tank about once per month, so only about $40-$50 per month????

 

If he were going all over the place, we might change that.

 

And we pay his insurance.

 

We cover all transportation if they go to the local 4 year school and live at home.  Anything above that, they need to pay the difference.

Edited May 16, 2017 by DawnM

[Garga]

I had to get a car when I was a teen to get to my job which was 20 minutes away. Because I had a job, I paid for my own gas. I wouldn't have even thought to ask my parents for the gas. It just felt natural for me to pay for it myself.

 

My parents gave me the downpayment for the car and paid for the insurance, but I made the car payments as well as paying for the gas.

Edited May 13, 2017 by Garga

[Tree Frog]

You could give him X number of dollars (based on his average usage) for fuel and let him budget accordingly.

 

But honestly, most families I am familiar with pay for it all too. At least while the kids are in school.

 

This is what we do. We transfer a set amount, based on driving to/from school and work, and whatever additional gas dd needs, she pays for.

[Zinnia]

It's amazing to me that this was even possible though. I worked A LOT. I had to pay for my many of my needs/wants. Despite all the working though, I never earned enough to afford a car as a teen (minimum wage or less per hour jobs). Insurance rates in my area for one thing were just INSANE (they still are).

 

My first car cost $1400. I was so proud. My mom gave me a ride to work for about 9 months for me to save up the money. I paid her for the gas to take me to work.

Edited May 14, 2017 by Zinnia

[lynn]

We let the boys fill up their cars once a week. They drive to school and work. Usually Sundays I give them my cc and they drove to the corner gas station to fill their tanks. There have been a couple of times when I would need to use their cars and I would fill it up for them while I was out.

Edited May 14, 2017 by lynn

[Juniper]

We pay during the school year and contribute in the summer months. Dd does a lot of driving her siblings around and her having a vehicle often saves me driving her to town, dropping her off and driving back in to get her. So long as her grades are high, she is dedicated in her athletics and not in trouble we pay. We do not allow her to work during the school year, so when summer hits we do have her contribute to the gas tank. 

[StephanieZ]

I feel your pain. I went through this for a few years! We live about 15-20 miles away from anything, so it's easy to burn LOTS of gas piddling around.

 

Last summer, we totally went to "kids pay their own gas" and we made them "earn" gas for their cars . . . We made it very easy to earn enough to cover essential gas (work/approved school and extracurriculars). Specifically, for our college girl who was doing an unpaid internship with our encouragement (she has massive merit scholarships for college, so we were happy for her to earn little last summer), we paid her $3/hr for all volunteer hours (this money was to cover gas plus all "blow money" all summer). For our high school kid, who was not working, we also paid $3/hr for volunteer hours (more limited, maybe 100 hours all summer) AND we paid cash bonuses for a clean room and/or clean car on Sundays. 

 

We noticed an IMMEDIATE and DRAMATIC reduction in the wasted mileage. They ended the random "let's go to Walmart to pick up chocolate chips. . . 30 miles . .. and an hour later, "let's go back to Walmart for sour patch candy" . .. another 30 miles . . . They had never bothered to carpool or to consolidate errands because they ENJOY driving around randomly, lol.

 

TOTAL AND DRAMATIC reduction!!! 

 

So, I'd say that one way or another, give the kid(s) a set amount of money or a way to "earn it" from you. No more just filling up the tank over and over again.

 

Also, it helps the kid get a more realistic understanding of the true cost of driving. I have also repeatedly pointed out to them that gas money is less than half of the true, total cost of driven miles (insurance, wear and tear, etc.) . . . I don't know if they "get that" part, but just paying the gas themselves made a HUGE dent in wasted miles. 

 

If you don't want to "pay them" them for tasks/etc, then I'd just calculate the "approved" miles for school/whatever, give them a set allowance to cover that much gas plus about 10%, and then the rest is on them. (I have always clarified that one of the prices of driving family cars is that you're expected to grab milk if I ask or pick up a sibling, etc. . . The 10% extra covers the occasional extra mile or two to swing by the grocery or whatever. . .)

 

Oh, and I also have given an extra $10 here or there if I ask a teen to drive substantially out of the way to drive around a younger sibling, etc. I.e., if they are saving ME 2 hours and 30 miles of driving, I'm happy to round up on the gas money for that trip, so I might give my kid $10 to cover that trip (even though the actual gas would be more like $5). That way, they get "extra" money and it avoided resentment at being asked to do driving "for me" or "for a younger sibling". That works really well, and has led to my generally cranky son being cheerful about giving rides to his younger sister, since then those miles are "free" for him, lol.

 

Another bonus. . . On occasion, if we're at the gas station at the same time as a driver-teen, and we randomly fill up their car, the kid is over-the-top grateful!! Yay!! It's super sweet. :)

 

 

Edited May 16, 2017 by StephanieZ

[DawnM]

:laugh:

 

On a side note, are you sure he is getting 50 mpg?  That isn't just what was stated on the sticker at the sale?  Has he tested that out with traffic, stop start, etc. ? FWIW, no car I have ever bought actually performed as well as advertised in daily driving.  I had to keep that in mind when budgeting for gas.

 

I have a Prius and with regular driving I get between 47-50mpg PER TANK.  

 

Dh gets better than that because he does all those little tricks and such.   He doesn't drive it enough to know a full tank's worth, but he can get close to 70 on any given little trip he goes on in town.  

[Scarlett]

I feel your pain. I went through this for a few years! We live about 15-20 miles away from anything, so it's easy to burn LOTS of gas piddling around.

 

Last summer, we totally went to "kids pay their own gas" and we made them "earn" gas for their cars . . . We made it very easy to earn enough to cover essential gas (work/approved school and extracurriculars). Specifically, for our college girl who was doing an unpaid internship with our encouragement (she has massive merit scholarships for college, so we were happy for her to earn little last summer), we paid her $3/hr for all volunteer hours (this money was to cover gas plus all "blow money" all summer). For our high school kid, who was not working, we also paid $3/hr for volunteer hours (more limited, maybe 100 hours all summer) AND we paid cash bonuses for a clean room and/or clean car on Sundays.

 

We noticed an IMMEDIATE and DRAMATIC reduction in the wasted mileage. They ended the random "let's go to Walmart to pick up chocolate chips. . . 30 miles . .. and an hour later, "let's go back to Walmart for sour patch candy" . .. another 30 miles . . . They had never bothered to carpool or to consolidate errands because they ENJOY driving around randomly, lol.

 

TOTAL AND DRAMATIC reduction!!!

 

So, I'd say that one way or another, give the kid(s) a set amount of money or a way to "earn it" from you. No more just filling up the tank over and over again.

 

Also, it helps the kid get a more realistic understanding of the true cost of driving. I have also repeatedly pointed out to them that gas money is less than half of the true, total cost of driven miles (insurance, wear and tear, etc.) . . . I don't know if they "get that" part, but just paying the gas themselves made a HUGE dent in wasted miles.

 

If you don't want to "pay them" them for tasks/etc, then I'd just calculate the "approved" miles for school/whatever, give them a set allowance to cover that much gas plus about 10%, and then the rest is on them. (I have always clarified that one of the prices of driving family cars is that you're expected to grab milk if I ask or pick up a sibling, etc. . . The 10% extra covers the occasional extra mile or two to swing by the grocery or whatever. . .)

 

Oh, and I also have given an extra $10 here or there if I ask a teen to drive substantially out of the way to drive around a younger sibling, etc. I.e., if they are saving ME 2 hours and 30 miles of driving, I'm happy to round up on the gas money for that trip, so I might give my kid $10 to cover that trip (even though the actual gas would be more like $5). That way, they get "extra" money and it avoided resentment at being asked to do driving "for me" or "for a younger sibling". That works really well, and has led to my generally cranky son being cheerful about giving rides to his younger sister, since then those miles are "free" for him, lol.

 

Another bonus. . . On occasion, if we're at the gas station at the same time as a driver-teen, and we randomly fill up their car, the kid is over-the-top grateful!! Yay!! It's super sweet. :)

Yep.. ..I have done this the last two or three weeks..a set amount. He is realizing how much extra he drives.

[Scarlett]

I have a Prius and with regular driving I get between 47-50mpg PER TANK.

 

Dh gets better than that because he does all those little tricks and such. He doesn't drive it enough to know a full tank's worth, but he can get close to 70 on any given little trip he goes on in town.

47-50 mpg is about what ds is getting.....I love that car.