Does Auto Insurance Cover Friends Driving My Car?

Understanding who your auto insurance does cover is an extremely important aspect of car ownership. In most of the United States, auto owners are required to carry minimum coverage in order to be able to legally drive, so understanding auto insurance can make the difference between who you allow to drive your car and who you decide should stay in the passenger seat.

Liability Coverage

Car insurance liability coverage follows a driver no matter what car they are driving. Most states require at least liability coverage and many states have assistance programs for low income residents who qualify.

Liability coverage is what allows a driver to drive a friend’s car and still be covered under their own auto insurance policy. If you plan to allow your friends to drive your car, one of the questions you should ask is about what kind and level of insurance coverage they already own. Knowing the answer may prevent problems down the line should they be driving your car and an accident occurs.

Comprehensive and Collision

Comprehensive and collision auto insurance coverage are specifically linked to the car that is being covered. These policies provide coverage for damage that may occur to a car as a result of an accident or vandalism. Charges for comprehensive and collision coverage are usually higher than liability coverage and they are additional expenses to the policy.

Other Drivers

The question of allowing other drivers to drive your car and whether or not they will be covered by your existing auto insurance is an important one. Unfortunately, there is no blanket yes or no answer, since this is something that varies from policy to policy.

When purchasing auto insurance, you should talk to the agent about who precisely is covered and what happens if you give permission to someone to drive your car and there is an accident. If you have complete coverage, many insurance carriers will cover the driver, but only at the minimum coverage limits. However, there are certainly insurance carriers who will not cover any driver who is not specifically named in the policy.

Another important factor can be where that person resides and if they are related to you. In general, if someone is living in your household and they regularly drive your car, then the insurance carrier expects you to have that person named on the policy. They will need to undergo the same underwriting and qualification process as any other policy holder.  

In some cases, if a family member is visiting and has permission from you to drive the car, then the insurance company will cover them if there is an accident, but the coverage may be limited. Additionally, in the future, that person may be specifically excluded from any future inclusion on the policy and your rates may increase as a result of any accidents.

When purchasing auto insurance, carefully review the details on excluded drivers and any limitations on coverage for anyone driving the car who is not specifically named on the policy.