For the first time since launching Tesla Insurance in 2019, Tesla will begin underwriting its own policies, starting in California.
Tesla Insurance originally debuted in California and has since expanded to several U.S. states. Until now, policies were underwritten by State National, a subsidiary of the Markel Insurance Group. However, Tesla is now transitioning to fully in-house underwriting, beginning with its home state.
As part of this shift, California Tesla Insurance customers who receive an in-app offer to switch will be eligible for a one-time 3% discount on their next term’s premium—covered entirely by Tesla Insurance.
What is Underwriting
Underwriting is the process an insurance company uses to assess risk and determine whether to offer coverage, at what price, and under what terms.
Insurers evaluate factors such as driving history, credit score, age, vehicle type, and location. In Tesla’s case, vehicle driving data (not available in California) also plays a key role in risk assessment. These factors help classify drivers into risk categories, which influence their base premium.
From there, coverage limits, deductibles, and policy inclusions or exclusions can further adjust the final premium up or down.
Robotaxi and Other Benefits
At first glance, underwriting insurance might seem like a complex and costly process for Tesla. However, there are several compelling reasons why this move makes sense.
Insurance Income: Insurance is a highly profitable industry. Companies set rates based on risk, offering lower premiums to safer drivers and higher rates to riskier ones. This not only maximizes profitability but also incentivizes safer driving behavior, reducing overall claims.
Data Advantage: Tesla collects vast amounts of driving data through its Safety Score system. While California doesn’t allow Safety Score to impact premiums, Tesla can still use this data in the underwriting process to refine risk assessments and pricing for its vehicles.
Control Over Repair Costs: By underwriting its own policies, Tesla gains direct control over repairs and total loss decisions. This allows them to dictate when, where, and how repairs are done, optimizing costs for parts, labor, and service while ensuring vehicles are fixed according to Tesla’s standards.
FSD-Driven Discounts: Tesla has already begun offering insurance discounts for drivers using Full Self-Driving (FSD). By underwriting its own policies, Tesla could expand these incentives, potentially offering greater discounts to frequent FSD users in the future.
Preparing for Robotaxi: Perhaps the biggest long-term reason for this shift is the June launch of the Robotaxi fleet. How will Tesla insure these vehicles? The answer is simple—by underwriting its own policies and assuming liability.
Tesla’s decision to underwrite its own insurance isn’t just about cutting out middlemen—it’s a step toward lowering costs, increasing profitability, and preparing for the future of autonomous driving, a risk many insurance companies may be unwilling to make.
Further Expansion
This could be a strong sign that Tesla is preparing to expand its insurance offerings now that it has taken on the underwriting process itself. In July 2024, Tesla hired a former GEICO insurance executive to lead the expansion of Tesla Insurance and help reduce costs—a move that now appears to be paying off.
Rather than a traditional expansion, Tesla has instead made a bold move by bringing underwriting in-house, something few expected. However, it aligns with Tesla’s strategy of vertically integrating and controlling key aspects of its business, whether in manufacturing, software, or now, insurance.
If this pilot program proves successful, it could pave the way for Tesla Insurance to launch in more states—and potentially even other countries. With 2025 shaping up to be a pivotal year, we may see Tesla accelerate its insurance expansion sooner than expected.
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With software update 2024.26, Tesla introduced Parental Controls, a long-awaited feature designed to give parents greater peace of mind while their teens are on the road.
This addition reinforces Tesla’s reputation for safety, offering more controls and monitoring for young drivers. Let’s explore what Parental Controls can do and how to enable them.
What They Do
Tesla’s Parental Controls lets you set restrictions in the vehicle, creating a safer driving experience—especially for young drivers. These controls not only limit certain vehicle functions but also keep parents or owners informed about the vehicle’s location and usage in real-time.
There are four main features of Parental Controls, including reduced speed and acceleration, enforced safety features, and late-night driving alerts. Each of these main features can be turned on or off individually.
Reduced Speed & Acceleration
The standout feature of Tesla’s Parental Controls is the ability to set a maximum speed limit and restrict acceleration to Chill Mode.
By limiting acceleration to Chill Mode, the vehicle reduces horsepower and torque output, making it an excellent safeguard for young or inexperienced drivers.
For Maximum Speed, you can set a limit starting from 50 mph (80 km/h)and up. However, keep in mind that certain driving situations, such as merging onto a highway or passing another vehicle, may require a temporary higher speed.
Additionally, performance-related features are restricted for Parental Control profiles:
• Track Mode is disabled on Performance models or any vehicle that supports it—so no late-night donuts in the parking lot.
• Launch Mode, which is only available on Plaid models is also greyed out, preventing high-powered acceleration.
Enforce Safety Features
Parental controls are enabled in this vehicle, enforcing certain safety features
Not a Tesla App
Tesla’s Parental Controls also enforce key safety features, ensuring they remain active while Parental Controls are enabled. These features include:
Speed Limit Warning
The speed limit warning warns the driver when they go 5 mph (8 kp/h) above the speed limit and can not be adjusted. Audio and visual alerts are enforced.
While most of these safety features should always be enabled for any driver, Tesla allows them to be turned off manually. However, Parental Controls lock these settings, preventing accidental or intentional deactivation.
Night Driving Alert
Parental Controls also allow you to set a curfew, allowing you to be notified if a restricted driver uses the vehicle late at night. Curfew hours are set between 11 pm and 4 am and can not be changed. You’ll receive a Tesla appnotification anytime the car is driven between these hours.
How to Enable Parental Controls
Not a Tesla App
Activating Parental Controls is simple and can be done either in-vehicle or through the Tesla app, making it easy to manage restrictions anytime, anywhere.
• In-Vehicle: Go to Vehicle Settings > Safety, then scroll down to Parental Controls and choose Enable. You can also enable parental controls by tapping on the profile icon at the top of the screen and choosing Parental Controls.
• In the Tesla App: Navigate to Security & Safety to access Parental Controls.
After enabling Parental Controls, you’ll be asked to enter a four-digit code that will be required when turning it off.
How to Turn Off Parental Controls
Parental Controls apply to the entire vehicle and affect all driver profiles. If you’re switching between a driver who needs parental controls and one who doesn't, then parental controls must be enabled or disabled after each driver uses the vehicle.
To turn off parental controls, tap the Profiles icon in the status bar, then tap parental controls and enter your PIN.
How to Tell If Parental Controls Are Enabled
There are a few ways to tell if parental controls are enabled in the vehicle. The easiest way is to tap the Profile icon in the status bar. If parental controls are enabled, you’ll see “Parental Controls Enabled” at the top of the list of profiles.
Which Models Are Supported
Like most Tesla software updates, new features apply to most features. This means that parental controls are available on most Teslas, including all Model 3s, all Model Ys, Cybertrucks, and 2021+ Model S and Model X vehicles.
Future Updates
Since introducing Parental Controls in 2024, Tesla has already added additional functionality, such as requiring Park Assist Chimes, Emergency Lane Departure Avoidance, Automatic 911 Calls, and other features.
There will likely be further improvements to parental controls that will introduce additional capabilities in the future. Such features could include letting guardians customize the curfew hours and locking parental controls to specific profiles.
Parental Controls are an immensely valuable feature if you have a young driver in the house. Similar to Valet Mode, they restrict access to several features, but while Valet Mode focuses on privacy, Parental Controls focuses on safety.
Tesla’s refreshed Model Y is currently being manufactured as Tesla prepares for its first deliveries next month. While we’ve already seen quite a few cool new features, there’s more that has yet to be revealed. A recent video interview with Tesla’s engineering team hosted by Tesla Owners Silicon Valley reveals that the vehicle includes a new 4D cabin radar.
4D Radar
While Tesla has included an in-cabin radar since 2022, this appears to be a new, more capable radar. The current cabin radar is used to verify seat occupancy, but Tesla plans to add more functionality to this new system.
This updated radar will be used to provide a lot more detail than the current radar or cabin camera can provide today. The radar is located in the same location as the current version, directly above the rearview mirror.
Classify Passenger Size
This new radar has several new safety-focused features, and they’re all quite exceptional. First off, the radar will detect and classify passenger size to determine which airbags to deploy dynamically. That means that if a shorter individual is sitting up front, the dashboard airbag may not activate - but the curtain airbag will.
That will reduce injuries in impacts from airbag activation while also reducing repair costs by not activating unnecessary airbags. By having a better idea of the passenger’s size, height, and weight, the vehicle can also better determine when to activate the airbag.
Children Left in Car
But that’s not all - because of that classification system, the radar can differentiate an adult passenger from a baby or child sitting in the second row - and automatically make the necessary dynamic safety adjustments.
The cabin radar will also detect heart rate and breathing, and Tesla will automatically send a reminder through the Tesla app if it detects a child is left unattended in the vehicle. If this occurs, the vehicle will perform a variety of functions, the first being to turn on the HVAC system and send you a reminder. And if that’s not enough - in the case of an emergency, your vehicle will automatically call emergency services for you and report its location.
It’s important to note that while vehicles outside North America have eCall capabilities, in North America, they cannot call 911 unless a phone is connected to the vehicle via Bluetooth. We hope that Tesla can contact 911 via an alternative method or add eCall capabilities to these vehicles.
While the refreshed Model Y will be shipping in March, this new radar and its associated features won’t be available immediately. Tesla intends to activate these new safety features in Q3 2025 - so sometime in late summer or early fall. We’ll dive into this new feature once it’s available later this year.
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