Owning a car entails a lot of responsibilities. At other times you have to bring it to the mechanic for maintenance and tune ups. You also have to spend money for your gas so you can use it. You also need to clean it from time to time. It is one of the things you own that you cannot neglect.
But a classic example of a big responsibility you have is that you have to get car insurance from a state registered company. If you drive uninsured you are breaking your state’s law. You also have to pay for your premiums regularly and you can not allow your car insurance lapse because they all matter in your next application.
Never lend your car to someone who is not covered by your insurance. You are a generous person but in this specific situation you cannot risk your car and your car insurance.
Just imagine that you lend your car to a friend but he is not covered by your insurance and doesn’t have an insurance of his own. Then afterwards you received a call from him that he just got involved in an accident. A problem kicks in, how are you related to that incident?
If you gave him the permission to drive your car then your policy will cover what it can cover for the accident. But what if you only have the required minimum coverage? The other insured party can sue you for medical expenses. And then you have to think of the cost for your car’s repair.
Why? As long as you gave your permission, you are taking the responsibility for both property and bodily injury. Thus, your car insurance will cover what your friend did. This situation is called as “vicarious liability”. Your friend is on the safe side, not you. Aside from that, there is a big possibility that your insurance rates will go up and worst, your friendship could end because of that incident.
Your car affects your finances so do not let somebody use it if he is not covered by your car insurance. You can also contact your insurer before lending your car to anybody or re-read your policy. Ask for available options such as adding that person in your car insurance coverage. On the other hand, members of your household can use your car with or without permission. But it is only you who can give permission to a person who wants to borrow your car.
You cannot risk your finances and claims history because one wrong move and you are will pay enormous sum of money. Aside from that uninsured drivers are more reckless because statistics show that they are involved in more accidents compared to insured drivers.
If you decide to lend your car, it is better to lend it to somebody who has insurance so will not be shouldering all the cost when it happens because the borrower could provide secondary coverage if your car insurance policy did not fully cover the damages.
