What An Excluded Driver Is and How This Affects Insurance
When shopping for car insurance quotes, you may need to check out the excluded driver provision if you have one or more people living under your roof who are not good drivers. An excluded driver option can save you quite a bit of money, but you need to fully understand what it is, what it does, and what it doesn’t do for you as the car owner.
If your housemate, friend, or cousin is living with you and operating your car with any regularity, you need to tell your insurance company. They will let you know how much extra it will cost to add your friend to your policy. If your friend is a bad driver, it will cost quite a bit to add them. In fact, it may not be worth it for either of you. If you tell your insurance company that you will be the only driver and you need to establish an exclusion for your friend, your payments will remain low.
After removing the other driver from your policy, you may not permit your friend to drive your car. If you do and there is an injury accident or any kind of accident, you will be held responsible for your friend’s actions, even if there is a collision during an emergency. Your insurance company will be happy to exclude a driver with a poor record, numerous accidents, a recent driving while intoxicated conviction, or any other serious offenses.
Your friend may be able to obtain assigned risk coverage for themselves through your state. This is a high risk pool whose losses and expenses are shared by all the car insurance companies given the opportunity to sell their insurance within your state. Although the policies are somewhat limited, some insurance is better than none. After maintaining a clean driving record for three years, an assigned risk driver may be able to obtain regular coverage and be included on your policy.
If you have an excluded driver policy, you must assure that the driver does not drive your car. You would be responsible for any damages or liabilities incurred in the event of an accident. The risk is simply not worth it. Additionally, if your friend takes your car without your knowledge and causes an accident, your insurance company may insist that you file car theft charges with the police department. Do not allow an excluded rider to have a set of keys to your car. Do not leave your keys where they can be taken.
If a friend’s use of your vehicle causes your car insurance quotes to rise unexpectedly, ask your insurance company for an exclusion policy. It can lower your insurance by as much as twenty percent.
