Drive other cars on insurance
Drive other cars on insurance
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Discussion

J4CKO

Original Poster:

46,824 posts

229 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
I have been offered an M3 by a mate of my son, I wouldnt having a test drive.

I checked my insurance with Admiral, it says I, as the policyholder have the right to drive other cars.

So, just want to check, for driving the M3 I would be legally covered for the road risk and if I was to crash into someone they would be covered for damage I do to them but the M3 is not covered in any way, so its kind of a you bend it, you have bought it scenario ?

Just talking about a quick up and down the bypass and round the block not having it for a day or two or anything.

leigh1050

2,456 posts

194 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
I was always under the impression that if you've got full comp insurance you can drive other vehicles but only with third party cover.
So if you have an accident that is your fault you would have to pay for damages to the car you was driving.

PorkInsider

6,585 posts

170 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
If your policy says that you can drive other cars (it may or may not state that the other car has to be already covered by another policy) then yes, it will almost certainly be for 3rd party risk only.

leigh1050 said:
I was always under the impression that if you've got full comp insurance you can drive other vehicles but only with third party cover.
That's a dangerous thing to assume without checking your policy carefully. Having a fully comprehensive insurance policy doesn't automatically give you cover to drive other cars. Quite a few people seem to think it does, though...

agtlaw

7,402 posts

235 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
leigh1050 said:
I was always under the impression that if you've got full comp insurance you can drive other vehicles but only with third party cover.
Depends on the policy. Even with DOC cover, there’s often a minimum age. I looked at one recently where the insured had to be age 25 or over for DOC to apply.

BertBert

21,256 posts

240 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
J4CKO said:
I have been offered an M3 by a mate of my son, I wouldnt having a test drive.

[b]I checked my insurance with Admiral[/b[, it says I, as the policyholder have the right to drive other cars.

So, just want to check, for driving the M3 I would be legally covered for the road risk and if I was to crash into someone they would be covered for damage I do to them but the M3 is not covered in any way, so its kind of a you bend it, you have bought it scenario ?

Just talking about a quick up and down the bypass and round the block not having it for a day or two or anything.
We'll all say just read your docs from Admiral. They are written reasonably well in English and will be explicit about what your cover is and isn't. We'll only be guessing.

Jarcy

1,559 posts

304 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
agtlaw said:
leigh1050 said:
I was always under the impression that if you've got full comp insurance you can drive other vehicles but only with third party cover.
Depends on the policy. Even with DOC cover, there’s often a minimum age. I looked at one recently where the insured had to be age 25 or over for DOC to apply.
Yes, and that was my experience of Admiral group. (But as the Op also has a son's mate of driving age, I guess he's over 25).

roadsmash

2,667 posts

99 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
CHECK YOUR POLICY.

If you do not understand the policy wording... CALL YOUR INSURER and ask them.

DOC is not included in all policies and has different pre-requisites and terms.

Sometimes it is only for driving during an emergency.

I cannot stress this enough.

TwigtheWonderkid

49,040 posts

179 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
roadsmash said:
Sometimes it is only for driving during an emergency.
No it's not. Call centre staff will sometimes say it is, but it's just not true. No DOC extension ever mentions an emergency only restriction. And it's the policy that counts, not some minimum wage button monkey. And if it did, what's an emergency. That's a very subjective term.

Child very ill, rush to hospital?
Child a bit under the weather, take to the docs?
Cat ill, rush to the vet?
Cat limping a bit?
Run out of medicine, drive to pharmacy?
Run out of teabags, drive to shop?

One persons emergency is someone else's "fk it, I'll do it next Thursday".


Psycho Warren

3,087 posts

142 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
yeah double check the certificate and the exclusions. Lots of companies are yanking the drive other cars cover so you need to check. Mine did that on renewal so had to chase them up to get it put back on. Didnt cost any extra either.

Lots of things that used to be covered now aren't to save costs. Drive other cars and windscreen cover are the two main ones in recent years to get yanked.

J4CKO

Original Poster:

46,824 posts

229 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
BertBert said:
J4CKO said:
I have been offered an M3 by a mate of my son, I wouldnt having a test drive.

[b]I checked my insurance with Admiral[/b[, it says I, as the policyholder have the right to drive other cars.

So, just want to check, for driving the M3 I would be legally covered for the road risk and if I was to crash into someone they would be covered for damage I do to them but the M3 is not covered in any way, so its kind of a you bend it, you have bought it scenario ?

Just talking about a quick up and down the bypass and round the block not having it for a day or two or anything.
We'll all say just read your docs from Admiral. They are written reasonably well in English and will be explicit about what your cover is and isn't. We'll only be guessing.
Yeah, have done, logged in to the portal, always a bit cagey around driving other cars on my insurance.

Looks like as long as its insured by the owner I am legal to use it, but if I bend it he wouldn't be paid out so the liability is with me.

J4CKO

Original Poster:

46,824 posts

229 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
TwigtheWonderkid said:
roadsmash said:
Sometimes it is only for driving during an emergency.
No it's not. Call centre staff will sometimes say it is, but it's just not true. No DOC extension ever mentions an emergency only restriction. And it's the policy that counts, not some minimum wage button monkey. And if it did, what's an emergency. That's a very subjective term.

Child very ill, rush to hospital?
Child a bit under the weather, take to the docs?
Cat ill, rush to the vet?
Cat limping a bit?
Run out of medicine, drive to pharmacy?
Run out of teabags, drive to shop?

One persons emergency is someone else's "fk it, I'll do it next Thursday".
Exactly, have had that in the past with them saying "Emergency use" and they couldn't define it, I said wife giving birth vs having run out of ketchup with three small kids demanding ketchup.

No mention of it needing to be an emergency on this policy though.

I know someone who regularly drove his mates supercars on his "Driving other cars" clause, but guess it makes little odds if they arent paying for it if you crash it, but guess eyebrows would be raised, suppose you can technically do more damage with a Lambo than a Polo and they tend to be a bit more accident prone.


tejr

3,498 posts

193 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
Admiral have pretty much always offered 3rd party cover for other vehicles when I've taken out fully comp with them - except for this year. Not sure why - but yeah, as others have said. Check the policy wordings. Don't assume. I've seen value exemptions too where the car shouldn't exceed a specific current market value figure.

I've had brokers provide insurance where they specifically mention on their own paperwork that if there is explicitly no exclusion in the underwriters documents, then its included. Kinda dodgy I thought as you could miss the wording somewhere and assume you are covered as you haven't seen it mentioned!!

Edited by tejr on Wednesday 25th November 15:14

J4CKO

Original Poster:

46,824 posts

229 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
Jarcy said:
agtlaw said:
leigh1050 said:
I was always under the impression that if you've got full comp insurance you can drive other vehicles but only with third party cover.
Depends on the policy. Even with DOC cover, there’s often a minimum age. I looked at one recently where the insured had to be age 25 or over for DOC to apply.
Yes, and that was my experience of Admiral group. (But as the Op also has a son's mate of driving age, I guess he's over 25).
The cars owner is 21, he is selling it as he got done for no insurance, not on the M3, on a Smart car they have that he honesty thought he was covered on, but wasn't and got stopped.

J4CKO

Original Poster:

46,824 posts

229 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
This is the wording,

Drive Other Cars: Policyholder Only

The policyholder may also drive with the consent of the owner of a private motor car as long as the other car is not a hire or rental car, is not owned by you or your partner nor obtained by you or your partner under a hire purchase or lease agreement, within our territorial limits, providing there is a valid insurance policy in force for that car. The cover is Third party only.

TwigtheWonderkid

49,040 posts

179 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
tejr said:
I've had brokers provide insurance where they specifically mention on their own paperwork that if there is explicitly no exclusion in the underwriters documents, then its included.
That's complete rubbish. DOC has to be included, on your certificate. If it's not there, you ain't got it. They don't have to state they are not covering it. You need to find a better broker.

TwigtheWonderkid

49,040 posts

179 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
J4CKO said:
This is the wording,

Drive Other Cars: Policyholder Only

The policyholder may also drive with the consent of the owner of a private motor car as long as the other car is not a hire or rental car, is not owned by you or your partner nor obtained by you or your partner under a hire purchase or lease agreement, within our territorial limits, providing there is a valid insurance policy in force for that car. The cover is Third party only.
That's clear enough. Pretty standard stuff, although many insurers do not insist the car must have it's own policy in force. Your one clearly does.

catman

2,504 posts

204 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
Have you tried getting day insurance? You obviously want to do things the right way, so would be worth a look.

Sheepshanks

40,986 posts

148 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
leigh1050 said:
I was always under the impression that if you've got full comp insurance you can drive other vehicles but only with third party cover.
My Father-in-law was absolutely adamant that because he had 'fully comprehensive' cover anyone could drive his car and he got quite shirty when my wife refused to drive his car home. He called his insurer (SAGA) to prove it and was dismayed when they said he was wrong. Interestingly though they would cover if he was unable to drive and someone took over.

I'm RK of both our cars and the incident prompted me to change the policy on the car she drives into her name, to at least give her the safety net of DOC cover, which she didn't have even though named as the main driver of her car.

Edited by Sheepshanks on Wednesday 25th November 16:05

kestral

2,229 posts

236 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
TwigtheWonderkid said:
No it's not. Call centre staff will sometimes say it is, but it's just not true. No DOC extension ever mentions an emergency only restriction. And it's the policy that counts, not some minimum wage button monkey. And if it did, what's an emergency. That's a very subjective term.

Child very ill, rush to hospital?
Child a bit under the weather, take to the docs?
Cat ill, rush to the vet?
Cat limping a bit?
Run out of medicine, drive to pharmacy?
Run out of teabags, drive to shop?

One persons emergency is someone else's "fk it, I'll do it next Thursday".
SAGA insurance have a clause that allows other people to drive the policy holders car in the even of a medical/ motor emergency that involves the policy holder.

B'stard Child

31,076 posts

275 months

Wednesday 25th November 2020
quotequote all
DOC is something I always check before I purchase insurance from a new insurer (or renew with a current insurer) I got caught out and changed insurer and found I wasn’t covered as that company had stopped offering DOC cover as part of comprehensive cover - no biggy at the time as we found another way to resolve the issue but I did not renew with them and went with another company that did cover me on DOC

It’s just a handy thing to know you have it - it’s come in useful so many times.