In Ontario, all vehicles on the road must be insured in order to drive legally. Therefore, you need insurance to drive your parents' car or, in fact, anyone else's vehicle. However, the small print is that you may still have coverage for driving from time to time without having to buy your own insurance. Wondering who can drive your car with your insurance in Ontario? The short answer is: “anyone with a valid license and their permission.
However, the longer answer reveals a lot of nuances that you should consider before handing over the keys. The insurance covers the vehicle, not the person driving it. You can't legally drive in the province if you don't have one. If you own a vehicle, that vehicle must be insured.
And it doesn't matter who's driving the vehicle. If the vehicle is not insured, you will be charged the payment for driving without insurance, even if you don't drive the vehicle. Tell the guest driver where you can find the car's license plate and proof of insurance for your car. Let's say you have your own vehicle with an insurance policy attached to it, but you find yourself borrowing someone else's car.
Under section 2 (of the “Mandatory Car Insurance Act”), you cannot operate a motor vehicle unless that vehicle is legally insured. However, motorists who drive someone else's car on a regular basis may need to be listed as occasional drivers on the insurance policy. Depending on your needs and preferences, you may want to purchase car insurance coverage for non-homeowners to improve your current policy. Another factor to consider with respect to collisions caused by the culprit is the level of liability coverage in the car owner's insurance policy.
While it goes without saying, you should specify that the car is being lent only to them, meaning that no one else can drive the car. You might be wondering if someone who has a valid license and active auto insurance in Ontario can use your car without breaking any laws or contracts. You don't need insurance for people outside the owner if you drive a company vehicle for business reasons or if it's on the policy of someone you live with. As long as you have a valid license, you can drive someone else's car, even if you don't have car insurance.
In most cases, if you give someone else permission to drive your car and they are involved in an accident, your insurance will likely cover the costs. However, if your friend or family member who borrows your car doesn't have insurance, but you and your car are insured, then yes, you can. If someone borrows your car and is involved in an accident, your insurer will cover the losses as long as the person driving has explicit permission to use it. Their insurer can exclude them from driving the vehicle if that person doesn't meet the company's insurability requirements.
While insurers won't disagree with someone borrowing your car from time to time, letting them do so on a regular basis is an entirely different story.
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