Hi Tommyjr!
The answer is that it depends on your individual policy terms - this
will vary from insurer to insurer and from policy to policy. Usually,
the insurance "follows the car".
To get an example for you, I contacted the nice folks at Progressive
(1-800-PROGRESSIVE) to pose your question. They put me in contact
with the claims division for the state of California, and the claims
division told me this about Progressive's practices:
--typically, for an accident to be covered under your insurance, the
vehicle you're driving *must* be registered on your insurance.
--if you have insurance yourself, but drive a borrowed vehicle that is
not insured and get into an accident, your insurance *may* (depending
on your specific policy) initially cover the damages to the other car
(not the one you're driving), but will then pursue the owner of the
uninsured car for re-imbursement.
There is no "generic, all purpose" answer to this question, alas.
What is or is not specifically covered by your auto insurance policy
is wholly dependent on the type of coverage you carry.
Researching a bit further, I uncovered the following for you:
"Accident With a Borrowed Car: Whose policy pays?
If you loan your car to a friend and your friend has an accident, it's
your insurance that's on the hook. "The insurance follows the car" is
the general rule of thumb.
Q: Might there be circumstances where the borrower's insurance would
become involved?
A: Yes. Suppose you borrow a friend's car and have a serious
accident. If your friend's (the owner's) coverage (called the primary
coverage) is used up, then your own coverage (the secondary coverage)
would step in. Or suppose you borrow your friend's car, have an
accident, and then find out your friend did not have insurance in
force on the car. Then your insurance may step in and become the
primary coverage."
Auto Insurance
http://www.hunterins.com/insinfo/autoins.htm
"Q) If I borrow a car from a friend or relative for a short time while
my vehicle is being repaired, will my policy cover me while I am
driving the borrowed car?
A) The policy covering the vehicle would be primary and in most cases,
your policy would cover the vehicle on an excess basis. If no policy
covers the borrowed car, most companies will treat your policy as the
primary coverage for the borrowed car."
Commonly asked auto insurance questions
http://www.auto-insurance-quotes-plus.com/11-FAQ-answers.html
"Coverages for Automobile Owners
What happens if you are at fault in an accident?
Unigard’s Personal Auto Policy offers Liability coverage for you and
your family if any of you are legally responsible for an accident
causing bodily injury to someone or damage to his or her property.
Liability coverage applies when you are driving:
* Your own auto, pickup or van listed on the policy;
* A temporarily borrowed car; or
* A rental vehicle"
Coverages For Owners
http://www.unigard.com/product/pl/coverAuto.asp
"Collision and Comprehensive: These coverages pay for repair or
replacement of your vehicle, regardless of fault, if your car were
damaged, by wreck, fire, flood, hail, etc. If you were to wreck a
borrowed car, this is the coverage that would pay. Generally, you are
probably better off with the same sized deductible on both the
collision and the comprehensive coverages. A moderately sized
deductible, such as Two Hundred and Fifty Dollars, probably provides a
reasonable balance between economy and protection. This is also the
coverage, which would protect you if you were to wreck a borrowed
car."
Automobile Insurance Coverages
http://www.injury.com/auto.html
"Auto insurance policies are designed to protect the owner of the
vehicle regardless of who drives the car. Therefore, if your friend
gives you permission to drive his car, his insurance pays first. This
is true even when you don't want this to happen. This is called
primary coverage.
You may want your own insurance to pay so the friend who was kind
enough to lend you the car in the first place, does not have to turn
in a claim. However, your insurance will not step in first. If the car
owner does not have insurance, or it is inadequate, your insurance
will protect you in the event you have an accident in the borrowed
car. This is called secondary coverage."
Insurance Follows The Car
http://www.wedavis.com/newsletter/personal/9811.htm#h
On the other side of the question, the Massachussetts Supreme Court
ruled in 2001 that a driver's insurance company was *not* responsible
for paying for an accident caused by one of it's policy-holders, who
was driving someone else's car at the time:
HANOVER INSURANCE COMPANY vs. CHRISTINE FASCHING.
http://www.claimrep.com/laws/cases/Ma/caseMAHanover01.htm
The Claims Division at Progressive strongly recommended that you
contact your auto insurance agent for your specific coverages, as did
my own insurance agent, who stressed that while one company may cover
"borrowed car" accidents, others may not, and it's up to the insured
to find out directly from his agent *before* driving someone else's
car.
Getting your information directly from your agent will save you many
headaches later, should you find yourself in the unfortunate position
of having been involved in an accident in your friend's car.
Good luck, and drive safely!
--Missy |
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