Going "rates" for HS aged carpools?

For the good friend—a tea is a good choice. For a teammate, I’d say the same thing. If they insist, ask for $1 or $2. For the tournament, I’d push the “my parents are driving”.

I used to work with teens at the high school theatre. The number of parents who left it up to their kids to “find a ride home” was astonishing.

I’d also set up some parameters for your DD as to how many kids she gives a ride to. A car load of teens has the potential for a lot of distractions, which a new driver doesn’t need. For the first 6 months of holding a license, the kids weren’t allowed any passengers other than a sibling. Then they were allowed one friend. I didn’t want my kid to become the neighborhood bus and I most importantly didn’t want the potential for problems with 4 or 5 teens in a car (the kids drove my old van).

I think a friend who is getting a ride should contribute a little more than a tea once in a while. She is saving gas or bus fare regularly.

The only time my daughter ever took money from her friends for gas was when they did road trips. She would usually drive because her SUV has the most seating and everyone would chip in for gas. She was never in a carpool situation because her friends all have their own cars. We pay for gas, insurance etc as she is a student.

That's great that she's so trustworthy! Virginia has similar laws and I just told  her that if she was caught and lost her insurance, she'd have to pay to find other insurance. I was pretty confident that DD kept to the rules because one time she called for permission to take another friend home.  She was in college by then and didn't remember that my rules only applied for the first year. She was one of the youngest in her class and graduated a few weeks after she turned 18.

I think for the one kid getting a ride every single day, I would accept gas money for that even though she’s a friend. Gas isn’t cheap, and it’s not the only expense that goes along with driving a car. There’s also insurance, tires, regular oil changes, air filters, etc. If it was just the occasional ride, then a tea or fast food lunch now and then would be acceptable.

For a long trip, my friends and I always split the gas as evenly as possible. The vehicle owner would start out the trip with the gas tank topped off, and then we would take turns paying to fill up. I would feel guilty not contributing toward paying my own way.