DEFINICIÓN
You may ask your car insurance provider to exclude a driver from your auto insurance policy. Once they have been excluded from your policy, that driver will no longer be covered by your plan and will not be able to drive your vehicle.
Excluded drivers: definition and examples
It is possible to exclude a driver from your car insurance plan if that driver has a bad driving record or is considered to be a problem driver. You may choose to do this if that driver has a poor driving record.
Important highlight point:
There are alternative names for driver exclusion, such as named driver exclusion
A common rule is that everyone in your household who is legally allowed to drive can be covered by your auto insurance policy. However, if you have a risky or disruptive driver in your home, you may want to consider adding him/her to your policy. When a driver has a lot of accidents or traffic violations, the insurance company is more likely to pay more in payments and coverage, so they are at a higher risk of being covered by their insurer. As a result of this increase in risk, your insurance rates will increase.
It has been observed that problem drivers have a history of:
Violations of traffic laws, such as speeding or running a red light
The act of driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs is illegal
As a result, if the problem driver continues to have accidents or receive tickets, your insurance company will send you a notice informing you that you have two options: either you pay a higher premium or you exclude the driver from your policy.
The person is no longer covered by your insurance if they are excluded from the plan as a driver. This means that person is not covered by your insurance while driving. They cannot legally drive any car covered by their policy unless they purchase a separate insurance plan. Once the problem driver is excluded from your plan, the insurer cannot increase your rates based on their driving record.
Keep in mind
In the case of excluded household members, they are still covered as passengers.
An Excluded Driver: How Does It Work?
Your auto insurance provider will update your policy if you decide to exclude one of your household members from your policy. This updated policy will include the name of the excluded driver as well as the conditions that the insurer is not willing to cover.
There is a written agreement between the insurance provider and the policy owner stating that the household member is no longer covered when driving your insured car. It does not have to be a close family member to be excluded from the insurance program. You can exclude anyone who lives in your house, such as a roommate or a cousin, from the policy.
The member of the household who was listed as an excluded driver should not drive any vehicle covered by the plan. This is because they have been named as an excluded driver. If they do, it will be the same as driving without insurance. There is a possibility that both the vehicle owner and the excluded driver could be held personally liable if an accident occurs.
Keep in mind
There are some states that do not allow driver exclusions in order to reduce the number of people driving without insurance. There are some states, such as Wisconsin, that do not allow drivers to be excluded by endorsement.
Depending on the reason why it became a problem in the first place, the duration of the exclusion will vary accordingly. The driver may be able to get their insurance coverage back again if they accumulate a good driving record and maintain a valid driver’s license if they have been excluded as a means of appeasing the insurance company.
The first step in adding an excluded driver to your policy is to speak to your insurance agent, who will verify that the excluded driver has the right license and driving history to return to your plan. The process of restoring your status should be relatively quick once that has been completed, and you will be issued a new insurance policy shortly thereafter.
This is an example of excluding a household member. For example, if your son was 16 years old and had his driver’s license, he would be able to drive your car if you included him in your insurance policy. If they received a few speeding tickets, their insurance premiums would increase.
In the event that your son causes an accident after receiving two speeding tickets, your insurance provider may decide that your son is a risky driver despite the fact no one was injured in the accident. There are two options available to you: pay higher premiums or exclude your child.
If you drop your child from your primary insurance policy, they will also be required to purchase their own insurance so that they can continue to drive and maintain a good driving record. Six months after your child has been excluded from your insurance plan, you think they have learned their lesson. You contact your agent and discuss how you can add your child back to your insurance plan as a driver.
Is it necessary to exclude a driver?
Is it necessary to exclude a driver?
You always have the choice to exclude a driver from your car insurance policy. Your insurer cannot force you to do so. However, it may be possible for your insurer to charge you a high premium in order to force you into excluding the driver by threatening to cancel your policy if you do not agree.
The company does this for one simple reason. Insuring bad drivers is risky. This means that they are much more likely to cost the insurer in claim payments. In other words, your entire plan is going to be a riskier proposition for the insurer to cover. It is better for them to simply cancel your policy rather than to hire the riskiest driver.
If you find that you need to exclude someone from your insurance policy, try another way. Typically, the person you need to exclude may be someone in your household who needs to drive, such as your spouse or child. If your insurer insists on excluding them from your policy, you will have to find another way.
You should shop around first. Just because your current insurance company requires an exclusion for auto insurance, doesn’t mean that all of the other companies will do the same. You might be able to find one or two companies that are willing to cover you without the exclusion.
It may make sense to have two insurance plans, depending on the total cost. You would have your own insurance plan with the high risk driver excluded. You would then have a separate high risk policy for that driver. Plans like these can cost a lot, but if you want to remain with your current insurer, you can exclude someone who still drives.
Options for Excluded Drivers
Some insurance companies do not allow excluded drivers. Under some policies, everyone else in the household cannot get insurance either. Providers and plans may raise rates instead of allowing exclusions. Alternatively, the insurer could require the driver to drop coverage and purchase his or her own insurance.
Important
It is important to note that once you have excluded a driver from your policy, this exclusion will continue to apply every time your policy is renewed, and if you wish to change it, you will have to contact your insurer and ask them to agree to add the driver back.
If the provider allows you to do that, then you can always keep the driver on the plan. You will pay a higher premium for the policy, but you can decide how to pay for it. Your speedy kid can find a job to pay his share of the higher insurance premiums or get his own plan if he wants to drive.
As a means of appeasing the insurance company, you may want to send your problem driver to a driver improvement course. It may not be possible in some cases; if they end up in legal trouble, a judge might require that they take a driver improvement course. You may also need to attend driver education to keep your insurance policy.
A good way to determine how much money you will be able to save when you exclude or eliminate a driver from your household policy is to do the math. Your agent can tell you how much you can save by excluding or eliminating a driver, or how much adding them to a separate policy would cost.
What you need to know
Excluding a driver is not allowed in some states and companies.
Those excluded from your insurance plan will not receive coverage if they drive one of your cars.