What is an excluded driver?

Definition and Examples of Excluded Driver

How does an excluded driver work?

Can they force me to exclude a driver?

Alternatives to excluded driver

Definition and Examples of Excluded Driver

An excluded driver is a driver that your insurance company requests not to cover under your car insurance. Once they are removed from your insurance policy, that person will not be covered by your insurance plan and may not drive your car.

How does an excluded driver work?

If you decide to exclude a family member from your car insurance, the insurance company will update your insurance policy. The new plan will label the excluded driver and any conditions that are not covered by the insurance company.

The policyholder and insurance company sign an agreement that the named family member is no longer covered when driving one of your insured cars. The exclusions do not have to be limited to close family members. Any driver living in your household, such as a roommate or a cousin staying with you temporarily, can be excluded.

Once a family member is named as an excluded driver, they must not drive any vehicles covered by the plan. If they do, it is considered the same as driving without insurance. If an accident occurs, the vehicle owner and the excluded driver may be held personally liable for damages.

Do I have to exclude a driver?

Whether you need to exclude a driver from your car insurance is always your decision. The insurance company cannot “force” you to do so. However, they may make you feel as though you are being pressured to exclude someone by charging very high premiums or threatening to cancel your insurance policy if you do not agree to the exclusion.

The company’s justification is that bad drivers pose risks to the insurance company. This means they are much more likely to cost the insurance company in claims payouts. This makes your insurance plan a riskier proposition for the insurance company to cover. It is better for them to simply cancel your insurance policy rather than take on more risk.

You may find that the person you need to exclude is someone in your household who needs to drive, such as a spouse or child. If the insurance company insists on excluding them from your policy, you will need to find another solution.

Alternatives to excluded driver

Remember that not all insurance companies allow for excluded drivers. In some policies, if one driver cannot obtain insurance, then no one else in the household can obtain insurance either. Some policies and companies may significantly raise your rates instead of allowing exclusion. Alternatively, the insurance company may require the driver to be excluded from coverage and obtain their own insurance.

Note: Once a driver is excluded, this exclusion continues each time you renew your insurance policy. To change this, you will need to contact the insurance company and agree to add the driver back to your insurance policy.

You can always leave the driver on your insurance policy if your provider allows you to do so. Your premiums will increase, but how you pay the policy is your responsibility. If your speedy child wants to drive, they can find a job to pay their share of the higher insurance premiums or get their own insurance plan.

You may be able to send the problematic driver to a driving improvement course to satisfy the insurance company. In some cases, this may not be an option; if they have legal troubles, a judge may require them to do so. The insurance company may also require the driver to complete driving education to continue your coverage.

Before deciding to exclude a driver in your household from your insurance policy, it is beneficial to do some calculations. An insurance agent can help you calculate how much you will save by excluding or removing the driver. You might also look at how much it would cost to add a separate plan for them.

Source:

https://www.thebalancemoney.com/what-is-an-excluded-driver-527281