Auto Insurance Claims: Borrowed car or car rented from person, state farm insurance, steve woodard

Question
Hello,

My husband and I will be renting a house and car from an individual in Hawaii.  We have collision and liability insurance with State Farm where we live in California.  Our agent told us that we will have no coverage at all for anything that happens while we are driving the car in Hawaii.  However I have found this quote in a 2006 New York Times article:

"Steve Woodard, forms manager at State Farm Insurance, said that most primary insurance companies extended comprehensive and collision coverage to policyholders in a rented or borrowed car for up to 30 consecutive days."

Our agent also said that even though we are renting the car, it is viewed by State Farm as a "borrowed car" because we are renting from an individual, so the coverage that we would normally have with a rental company does not apply.

I am suspicious that she is mistaken.  What do you think?

Thank you very much for your help.

Sharon  

Answer
I think you are probably correct.  it will depend on the specific language in the policy contract.  You should read your policy to be sue.  

Many agents make mistakes like this, because insurance law and contracts can be very confusing.  They sell many different types of policies and cannot be experts on everything.  You could ask the agent to contact her local claims office or underwriting office and the company expert should be able to give a clear answer.