Mom To The Rescue
Life’s Little Jams Become Ever More Complicated
I had a lot of fun helping my adult son out of a pickle last night. No matter how grown up we think we are, we can always use a little help from good old Mom.
My 22 year old, fiercely independent (like his Mom) son called my cell phone at 6:30 PM.
“Mom, you have to come to the Audi dealer to co sign the lease because it’s on your insurance policy.”
“But I don’t want to lease a car. Do I have to?” I wondered how his trading in his leased car had now become my emergency. I knew he had ordered a 2019 Audi A4 to trade for his 2016 S3 whose lease term was up. I pictured the salesman sitting there with my son unable to complete the transaction without me. It was a situation full of possibilities. I could refuse to go which would infuriate my son who was ready to get his new car. I decided that would be sort of mean.
My son’s father and I never agreed on the best course of action with regard to getting our sons behind the wheel. He willingly co signed leases for them so they could get late model, fancy cars with relatively low monthly payments. I was of the opinion that they should buy used cars outright and save big money on not only the car, but their insurance, as well. They are both in the highest risk category for car insurance being males under the age of 25 in the state of New Jersey which has some of the highest insurance rates in the nation.
I drove to the dealer just a few miles away and pondered my strategies for making this worthwhile for me. I knew he wouldn’t be able to get the car without my full cooperation. I don’t always get his full cooperation at home, and I decided to see how much mileage I could get out of this.
I found my estranged husband sitting at the salesman’s desk with our son. Since he had moved to Pennsylvania four years ago, he was unable to add the new car to his insurance policy. He was planning to co sign the new lease, but the point was moot without being able to add the car to his policy. He was a lame duck, so to speak. Yay, me.
A series of complicated phone calls to the insurance company ensued where I had to agree to everything while simultaneously answering the finance manager’s questions. Did I want to add the new car to my existing policy and sign the lease, or have my son apply for his own insurance policy and do the lease himself? I knew his own insurance would be dramatically more expensive. I agreed to add him to mine.
We finally sat down with the finance manager to re apply for the lease with my name as co applicant. I seized the opportunity to put the pen down and pause before signing. I could make my son sweat a little. It was getting late and we both wanted to get out of there. The manager chimed in with a suggestion to my son that he fully cooperate at home with taking out the garbage and such. How did he know that is an ongoing battle? He must have kids.
When I heard how much the monthly payments would be, I told my son that if he became unable to pay I couldn’t afford the payments and would not make them for him which would result in the car being re possessed. I took the opportunity to tell him that it would be my car, too so I could drive it if I wanted. He had never let me drive the car he was turning in after three years, but had driven my car quite a bit over the years.
He yessed me on all counts. I signed the papers, and acted excited to be getting a brand new Audi. I walked outside with the salesman and looked over my new car. It was sweet.
Being able to swoop in and save the day with my great credit score and insurance policy in good standing was better than any patching up of minor wounds of childhood I may have done when he was a little kid. It was made more enjoyable by his father’s inability to help despite his best efforts.
My son thinks he is grown up and likes to remind me that “he is 22 years old and doesn’t need my help or advice.” Evidently, this is not true.
Thank you for reading :)
