There are many reasons why you might have found yourself needing to borrow a car. Perhaps you’ve just passed your driving test and are borrowing a friend or relative’s car until you can get your own, or maybe your own car is in the garage. Perhaps you’ve been in an accident and need a temporary vehicle to get you from A to B until you find a replacement. Either way, borrowing a car from somebody else, if possible, is usually cheaper than getting a rental. However, there are certain things to consider before you borrow a vehicle from somebody else to ensure that you’re driving legally.
Are You a Named Driver?
First of all, you will want to make sure that you are insured to drive the car. This is usually easy enough to do and the owner of the car can add you to their policy as a named driver so that you are covered by their insurance policy. Bear in mind that adding you to the policy as a driver might mean that their insurance premium goes up depending on your driving history, experience, and other factors, so you’ll need to negotiate payment with the car owner. You may be able to add yourself to their policy for the remainder of the year, or on a temporary basis depending on the insurance company that they are with.
Temporary Insurance
If being added to the car owner’s insurance as a named driver isn’t an option, don’t worry – there are other ways around it, including getting a temporary insurance policy. These policies tend to run on a weekly or monthly basis and insure you for the duration of time that you will be driving the car. They are separate from the main driver’s insurance policy on the car, but will usually require the car to be insured. You can get your temporary car insurance here for a wide range of situations; all you need to do is enter your details on the site and you can browse different quotes from providers until you find the most suitable one for you.
Your Own Insurance
If you already have comprehensive insurance on your own car and are borrowing somebody else’s vehicle, check whether or not you are covered to drive other cars through your own insurance policy. This is usually offered as standard to drivers over the age of 25 with fully comprehensive insurance, although you are usually only covered by a third-party policy when driving a car that is not your own. There may be other conditions attached, such as you may not be covered to drive other cars if your own car has been written off or stolen, so double-check with your insurance company first.
Borrowing a car from friends or family can be helpful if you’ve found yourself without wheels for a while. But before you drive away, make sure that you’re adequately covered by their insurance policy or your own.
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