Who is Covered Driving My Car?
We have all been in that situation: your friend or family member asks to borrow your car, but you aren't sure whether or not they would be covered by your insurance in case of an accident. If you have liability coverage, then your friend will be covered while driving your car as long as they have their own auto insurance coverage. Before lending your car to a friend, find out what kind of coverage he or she has to better understand the situation and make the most informed decision about letting them drive. As a general rule, try to avoid lending to friends without auto insurance or those who have poor driving records.
If you have a friend who consistently borrows your car, such as a roommate or significant other, you may want to discuss it with your insurance agent. Ask your insurance agent what would happen in the event that a friend was driving your vehicle and got into an accident. If you have complete coverage, this may not be a problem. However, even with complete coverage you will be more limited in the coverage you will receive in this event. Unless you have a limited auto insurance policy, your spouse is always covered under your own insurance plan. Alternatively, some insurance agents will not cover an additional driver no matter how extensive your coverage plan is and may require that this individual undergo the same qualification process you went through to ensure coverage.
You will want to approach the prospect of lending out your car to friends and relatives very cautiously. Although you may be safe in terms of coverage, your insurance plan will suffer the consequences if your friend is in an accident. As a result of a friend's accident, you would be the one paying the higher insurance rates and may even be limited in covering additional friends who borrow your car. Because of the high risk involved in lending out your car, you will want to make sure your plan fully covers the driver in case of an accident and try to avoid lending your car out as much as possible.
