Other New Insurance Rules (new to me) on comprehensive cover

[Rayny]

Most (not all) insurance companies allow you to drive other cars - with restrictions:

3rd party ONLY (not fire or theft).
Permission of that car owner.
That 3rd party car must be insured in its own right.
The car you are driving (other than your own) must not be hired, leased or owned by you.


Surely (and I'm guessing someone will tell me why not) wouldn't it be far easier to insure the person?
The rider being that they simply list all the cars they think they will be driving when they initially apply and the insurance company can decide on an appropriate premium?
If a car outside this group comes along, then you ring the company up and negotiate a price.

There are sometimes underwriter conditions that means driving other cars is not included on a policy. - Including, but not limited to age and occupation of policy holder.

It is possible to get personal fleet policies, however these are rarely required in the UK because most drivers will usually have only one or two vehicles. - Can you imagine the fun that could be had deciding liability between insurers if a vehicle was covered by a number of policies for different people ?

 

[Rich H]

It also means that if you let somebody test drive your car and they cause an accident the damage to your car is not covered.
Good luck getting them to pay for the damage.
Even if you got valid insurance details from them in the first place.

 

[ToeKnee]

Not on my current insurance but with my previous provider I was covered to drive other cars third party but NOT any cars owned by my spouse/partner!

 

[Petrol Pete]

Riders policies which did just that were once popular with motorcyclists. They only made sense if you were insuring a fast bike as they were priced on the assumption you would be. I'm not sure if they are still available.

I think they stopped them years ago...but if you still have one and keep it valid they can not change it , or that is how it was last time i looked.

 

[Petrol Pete]

My mate who has two commercial garages called me a while back offering me a passenger ride in a Tesla P85D (thats the fastest one right ?) on the way to pick up anther car so he could take the Tesla back to his customer.
He called me a short while later saying his Company insurance did not cover it , he regularly drives all sorts of cars and vans on his commercial insurance and this was the first time he had checked his policy !

If anything 'odd' comes in these days he always checks if he can drive it after years of assuming !

 

[Dryce]

Riders policies which did just that were once popular with motorcyclists. They only made sense if you were insuring a fast bike as they were priced on the assumption you would be. I'm not sure if they are still available.

People with just one smaller or lower value bike tended to go Third Party Fire and Theft back then.

If you were buying a comprehensive policy then it was pretty normal to have a 'Rider' policy back in the 80s even if you were covering one bike. Norwich Union were the dominant player in that sector of the market.

 

[E55BOF]

Rider policies certainly are still available; I have one for my three bikes. No different to a multicar policy on two or more cars, really, except much cheaper.

 

[BTB 500]

As everybody has said - third party cover only, it's always been so.

Used to be standard but as mentioned it hasn't been for some time now - many comprehensive policies do not cover you to drive any other vehicle:

Can I drive someone else’s car?

 

[renault12ts]

I am surprised as I've always thought that as long as I was insured, I could drive any car - e.g. test drive a (private) used car before I buy.

Thanks for the feedback.

So, you own a banger, say, and your mate has a Ferrari...you thought if he lent it to you it'd be fully insured by your insurance co.?

 

[Dryce]

Rider policies certainly are still available; I have one for my three bikes. No different to a multicar policy on two or more cars, really, except much cheaper.

My recollection is that the old style Rider policy covered any bike that you owned. The pricing was basically based on you specifying the biggest bike and your details and details of use and overall total mileage. You didn't have to necessarily provide details of the other bikes.

With a multicar policy you will normally have to specify each car and details of its use and mileage. The quote is formulated from each vehicle and driver and then a discount as bulk insurance purchase.

So actually quite different - but in those days it meant that a broker could deal with a Rider policy by looking up a book full of tables from the insurer to produce a quote - whereas these days everybody including the brokers and the comparison sites connect online with the insurer which allows collation of more information and details for more complex quotes.

 

[E55BOF]

Good point; as with a multi-car policy, details of all the bikes insured are required, and proposed use, and total mileage. Effectively the same as an old-style Rider policy for most people, though, except those who actually need cover for any bike, which I'm sure could be arranged - at a price...

 

[Germgh0st]

One other thing - the DOC extension doesn't cover you to drive you spouse's car AT ALL with some companies, so always best to check. Something to do with 'insurable interest'.

 

[Dryce]

One other thing - the DOC extension doesn't cover you to drive you spouse's car AT ALL with some companies, so always best to check. Something to do with 'insurable interest'.

It's been fairly standard that the DOC is to cover a car that is not part of your household and not hired or leased to you. The definitions can vary a bit to try and achieve that.

 

[del320]

Used to be standard but as mentioned it hasn't been for some time now - many comprehensive policies do not cover you to drive any other vehicle:

Can I drive someone else’s car?

Thanks for this, however, my SAGA policy specificly allows me to enjoy DOC cover.

...still have the "bend it, you mend it" condition though...

 

[bob6600]

Just to be aware if you have a Policy with Admiral you are insured 3rd party to drive any other vehicle that doesn't belong to you providing it is insured by the owner EXCEPT your spouse's car. I only found this out last year on renewal and don't know of any other insurance company that has this restriction

 

[BTB 500]

Thanks for this, however, my SAGA policy specificly allows me to enjoy DOC cover.

Indeed but this is no longer standard with comprehensive cover, as it used to be. So folks need to check their specific policies as some will include it now and others won't.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Just to be aware if you have a Policy with Admiral you are insured 3rd party to drive any other vehicle that doesn't belong to you providing it is insured by the owner EXCEPT your spouse's car. I only found this out last year on renewal and don't know of any other insurance company that has this restriction

I'd imagine that most of us will be a named driver on our spouse's policy.

 

[Deleted member 126251]

It becomes interesting when selling a car and potential buyers want a test drive!!

 

[bob6600]

I'd imagine that most of us will be a named driver on our spouse's policy.

Maybe. I never driver her car except for MOT and maybe if it needs something doing. Cost and extra £100 to add me which was ridiculous!