Car Insurance while Driving Another Person’s Car
Anytime people begin talking about car insurance, the conversation inevitably finds its way to the topic of car insurance while driving another person’s car. What happens if someone is driving another person’s car and gets into an accident? Who is covered? Whose insurance is primary? secondary? It’s time to set the record straight and ameliorate the painful anxiety that has always surrounded this question.
Let it be known before hand that in the United States, laws applying to car insurance while driving another person’s car may vary slightly from state to state, so there is no universal answer to questions surrounding this issue. If you have questions about your policy, or about driving another person’s car, the best person to ask is your auto insurance agent. He or she knows your policy, knows the laws in your state about driving another person’s car, and will be able to provide you with the most accurate information. That being said, you are here, and there are a few nuggets worth knowing that apply across the board.
The only real problem you can run into is if you or the owner of the vehicle you are driving is uninsured. This is universal, and can get you into trouble more ways then one. It is never prudent to drive uninsured. So make sure all the paper work is in line both on your side, and on the side of the person whose vehicle you are going to operate.
If you do get into an accident while driving another person’s car, there is a general system that looks relatively similar in all U.S states. If the vehicle you are driving has insurance coverage, then that policy will kick in first if need be. The driver’s (that’s you) policy is secondary, and will kick in if for some reason the owner’s policy is absent or inadequate. Furthermore, your coverage will kick in to cover any damages or losses that exceed the vehicle owner’s coverage.
In many cases – like with Farmer’s policies – the policy coverage will follow you anywhere. Again, this is subject to the laws of whatever state you are in, and not all policies reflect this feature of Progressive. Generally, if you rear end someone in another person’s car, then the vehicle owner’s policy will cover the damage of the other vehicle.
Despite the sometimes confusing and varying language of state-by-state car insurance law, there are a few concrete universals that you can always count on. NONE of these concepts and laws apply if you don’t have permission to drive the vehicle in question. Stole a vehicle? Not old enough to drive a vehicle? Driving your friend’s vehicle while they are out of town without asking them? None of these are ever good ideas, and you should have no reason to assume that yours – or another person’s – insurance policy is going to cover the consequences of your poor decision.
The keyword here is clauses. Another one is exceptions. Clauses, exceptions, clauses, exceptions. These vary state-by-state, and it’s difficult to get a concrete understanding of laws regarding car insurance while driving another person’s car without speaking directly to an insurance agent. This is always good practice, and will usually yield the best results. As a rule of thumb, if the driver and vehicle owner are insured, and the driver is operating soberly and with caution, then no one will be hung out to dry in the event of an accident.