Auto Insurance Claims: person not listed as driver, Excluded / Non Permissive Driver

Question
Hi Justin,

I have a question on insurance coverage for a person not listed as a driver.

In my case, both, me and my wife are listed as insured persons on the insurance card.

However, on the policy document, only my wife is listed as a driver.

In such a case, is the insurance coverage (whether liability or collission) the same; irrespective of who drives the car ?

Or does it mean that insurance coverage is applicable only if my wife is driving the car ?

Thanks
Pradeep

Answer
That's not as simple of a question to answer as it may seem.  Insurance policies are contracts, and in order to properly determine what is covered, we would have to review the contract language.  Without a copy of your policy, I can only give you a general answer, so here goes:

If there are no driver endorsements on the policy, then so long as you have permission to drive the vehicle, then all coverages apply, regardless of whether you are listed on the policy or not.

It is based on permissive use in cases where there is no specific language in the policy that says "no coverage if so and so is driving" or "no coverage if so and so is driving, and lives with you, and is not listed on policy" or "no coverage if you let someone that doesn't have a license drive".  

Those are simple explanations of endorsements that could cause driver listings to be relevant, but in most cases, there is no endorsement and coverage applies so long as the vehicle is being used with permission of the owner.

I hope this helps.