Covered Person
When buying car insurance, sometimes the language used in policies can seem confusing and hard to understand. Learning what specific terms mean can help you sort through the jargon and make a confident, informed decision about which car insurance policy is right for you.
When reading a car insurance policy, the term “covered person” refers to all persons covered under the insurance policy. This can include drivers, passengers, and other people who might be involved in an incident, depending on the situation.
The term “covered person” can most specifically be applied to the named drivers included on a policy. Most car insurance policies require you to name the drivers that will be driving a certain vehicle. In this case, a covered person would include the driver or drivers named on the vehicle policy whose names would be listed on the proof of insurance. These drivers are often the only people who need to be driving the vehicle.
Because of this, it’s often not a wise idea to casually let just anyone drive your vehicle. Though it might be tempting to let a friend or family member drive a vehicle on occasion, it’s worth a call to your insurance provider in advance to ensure coverage. It’s important to include all possible drivers on a vehicle insurance policy to ensure that there are no problems associated with a non-covered driver.
Other possible people who can be included as a covered person are vehicle passengers. Car insurance policies cover all human passengers in a vehicle. It’s important to ensure that all passengers are safely buckled in and that children are in an approved car or booster seat. This helps to make sure that everyone stays safe and is often an insurance requirement, as well as the law.
It’s also important to note that pets, however much you consider them to be part of your family, are not covered persons under a typical car insurance policy, though there are policies available to specifically cover the pets in your life.
Other people who can be covered under a car insurance policy are those people not in your vehicle who are involved in an accident. This can include pedestrians, as well as drivers and passengers in other vehicles. In case of an accident, it’s vital to have this coverage in order to protect yourself from liability.
Though car insurance terminology can seem difficult to understand at times, once individual terms are broken down and examined it can make the process of choosing a car insurance policy much easier and less intimidating. With research, your understanding of terms such as “covered person” can give you confidence when making these important decisions.
