Shift Driving, Insurance?

[Ryden]

Hello all,

Me and 3-4 friends are going from Toronto to Florida, or as close as we can get on our money. It is a graduation celebration trip and we will be 18 by then. I'm supplying the car (my parents) and I'm not looking foreward to driving all day every day. We had been planning on driving in shifts, as I have no problem letting my friends drive.

However, this could cause obvious legal problems. Not like we're planning on speeding or driving dangerously, but if we did get pulled over and one of my friends was driving (not on the insurance/registration) what would be the consequence? Is there any way around this or any clause allowing for other drivers? Does any of this change state to state? This is all other than putting them on as occaisional drivers, as that would be way, way over budget. So what can we do?

[Midwest Michael]

The best advice I can give is to ask your insurance agent about your coverage and how it deals with additional drivers. If your friends are insured on their own cars, or on their parents policies, also have them ask their insurance agents about how it deals with them driving other people's vehicles.

I believe as long as all of you have some form of insurance, you should be fine. But again, this is something your insurance agent should be able to answer for you.

Since you are taking your parents car, and you'll be crossing the International Border, you might consider getting a noterized letter from your parents giving you and your friends official permission to be driving the car. It probably wouldn't be an issue, but it would be some extra protection if you ran into any problems with the car's registration.

[PNW Judy]

The insurance goes with the vehicle. My daughter's car was in the shop for a week and, during this time, her grandparents were nice enough to loan her their pick-up. Unfortunately, during this time, she was rear-ended. Here's what happened:

1. When the police officers came, she had to show proof of insurance for the vehicle. They did not care if she had insurance but, rather, that the vehicle was insured. While the other driver's insurance paid for reparis, all negotiations, etc. were done by the grandparent's insurance company. Nobody even asked her for information about her own insurance for her own car. So, the important thing is that the vehicle is insured.

But, yes, I would definitely check with your insurance company to ensure that other drivers are covered when driving the car. I believe....but I'm not positive about this....that some forms of auto insurance do NOT cover all drivers like the grandparent's insurance did. So check with your insurance agent. If your current insurance won't cover all drivers, you might ask about getting temporary insurance during the trip to make sure everybody is covered.

Many states impose fines if you are driving without proper insurance coverage on the vehicle. If you were in an accident or pulled over for a traffic infraction, you could get an extra fine (even if the accident is not your fault) for not having proper insurance. So it's really important you get the proper documentation. Your insurance provider should be able to help you with all of this quite easily, I would think.

2. Registration can also be an issue. In the US, if you are in an accident or get a traffic citation, you are always asked for the car's registration. If you are driving a car that is not registered to you, especially one from another country, this might be a problem for you. And it's also possible that you can receive a fine if you don't have proper documentation. Michael's idea for a notarized letter is a great idea as it would show that even though the car is not registered to you, that you have permission to be using it. Again, it seems your insurance agent might be able to advise you about the best way to handle this.

[Midwest Michael]

In the US, if you are in an accident or get a traffic citation, you are always asked for the car's registration.

Oddly, In the handful of times I've been pulled over I've never been asked for my registration. Thankfully, I've only been stopped in 2 states, but its been consistant by state. In Minnesota, I've always been asked for License and Insurance, and in Wisconsin its only the license I've been asked for (WI is one of the few states that doesn't have a mandatory insurance law). In fact, shortly after I moved to Wisconsin, I was pulled over and then a month later was hit by a suicidal deer, I still had California Plate/License and even then they didn't ask me for my registration.

[PNW Judy]

Some states do. I got a speeding ticket in Nevada and got an extra $50 added to my ticket for not having registration. I got an additional $50 fine for not having my insurance card. When packing, I had taken out my case where I carry these items with the plan to take some un-needed stuff out, reorganize it, and put it back in the car but I forgot to put it back in the car. Big mistake!

I believe the fine for not having registration in Washington state is $101, or thereabouts. Washington state also has a fine for no insurance card. I think it's about $400!!!!

This is one of those things where state laws vary so much that it's better to be prepared, isn't it? I would recommend over-documenting and having your bases covered instead of under-documenting.

[Midwest Michael]

Absolutely, I wasn't saying that you shouldn't have your registration and insurance with you. In all of those cases, I've had the information with me and was a little surprised that it wasn't asked of me.

I suspect the cases where I wasn't asked for registration, they had instead just run the license plate.

Clearly both Registration and Insurance info is requested in most states, and I also know in some states if you can't prove you have insurance, not only will you be ticketed, but your car will be impounded until you can demonstrate that you do in fact have insurance.

[killer]

Check on the insurance carefully, I think it very unlikely that any policy will cover unnamed 18 year old drivers. My policy has a nobody under 40 clause!