Car Insurance for Canadian moving to Virginia as a student

Hi all ! I've done some search on my topic, and to be honest, have found and heard some conflicting information. I'm a Canadian who'll be moving down to Virginia for a 2 year MBA program starting this August, and want to take my car down there with me.

I fully own the car, no payments left, etc. I called up my insurance company, and they told me that I would need to get insurance via an American company such as Allstate, for example. However, a current Canadian student at the school I'll be attending that I spoke with mentioned that her insurance company had no problem continuing to cover her after she mentioned that she'd be moving to Virginia; her permanent address was still in Canada.

Im a little confused by the information, and whether they apply to me as a student. I checked with the Virginia DMV, and they said that as a student, I could continue using my CDN drivers license and Ontario plates, as long as I wasnt working while attending school.

If anyone can help me understand what I'd really need to do in my situation, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks in advance !!

-- Tue Feb 16, 2010 12:37 pm --

Update: I spoke to my insurance company again, and they mentioned that as long as I came home once in 6 months, they could continue to insure me while I was down in the states.

Im not sure of the significance of 6 months (probably because thats how long you can stay in the States as a Tourist), nor am I sure of how the insurance company will be able to track this ...

Additionally, I will be entering the states not as a tourist, but on a F-1 visa, given that I will be studying there.

However, since my permanent address for all intents and purposes will be back home, and since Virginia state law doesnt require me to register the car in Virginia or change my license plates, they seemed to be OK with continuing the insurance.

Having said that, can anyone see any pitfalls to this approach ?