That certainly does not fit the intent of the law that established the accounts. You aren't supposed to get tax benefits for living at home and incurring ordinary costs you would have incurred anyway.
What the IRS actually says is this:
The expense for room and board qualifies only to the extent that it isn't more than the greater of the fol- lowing two amounts.
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The allowance for room and board, as determined by the school, that was included in the cost of at- tendance (for federal financial aid purposes) for a particular academic period and living arrangement of the student.
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The actual amount charged if the student is resid- ing in housing owned or operated by the school.
The amount charged by the school is zero, or so I expect. So the question is, when the school put together the student's financial aid package and determined their "cost of attendance" for financial aid purposes, did the school know the student would be living at home, and how much did they include for "room and board" in the cost of attendance determination.
If I had to guess, I would guess that the school gives commuter students a transportation allowance in their "cost of attendance" but does not include very much, if anything, for room and board. But you will have to check your student's aid package.
