If a friend crashes your car, you'll usually be on the hook for any damages they cause, regardless of whether or not you gave them permission to drive it.

Written by Bonnie Stinson

Edited by Georgina Grant

Updated on Mar 29, 2024

Table of Contents

What is a "permissive driver"?
How will my insurance be discharged if a friend crashed my car?
Will my insurance rates increase if a friend crashes my car?
Final tips

Car insurance

tends to follow the car, not the driver. This means that regardless of whether you or your friend caused the accident, your car insurance policy will be considered primary — and your rate will likely go up.

Expect your premiums to rise after a permissive use accident even if you were not the driver.
Both your and your friend’s policies may be discharged to pay for damages.
Non-permissive use means that the driver’s policy is activated first, not yours.
Theft is covered under your comprehensive coverage—the thief’s policy is not relevant.

What is a "permissive driver"?

A permissive driver is someone you allow to use your vehicle, but who isn’t listed on your policy.

There’s nothing wrong with letting people borrow your car occasionally. This is called permissive use. If you give someone permission to use your car, it’s considered permissive use whether you’re in the car with them or not.

But in a permissive use accident, your insurance policy is considered the primary insurance. It will be exhausted before any other policy comes into play—even if your friend has their own insurance policy.

It’s worth pointing out that if someone is driving your car regularly (defined as more than 12 times per year), they should be formally added to your car insurance policy. This can bring up your premium but it’s the legal thing to do to ensure coverage.

Keep in mind that there is also something called a "named driver policy," which is rare but real. It only covers the people listed on your policy. In this situation, if someone is driving your car and they’re not named, your accident will not be covered.

How will my insurance be discharged if a friend crashed my car?

If a friend crashes your car, your collision insurance will pay for damages to the vehicle up to your policy limit. But

collision coverage

is optional, so it’s possible that you may not have this type of protection.

Your liability coverage will pay for any damage your friend did to the other person’s vehicle, or for injuries to someone else.

Keep in mind that you only get protection up to your limits. In a serious accident, damages could very well be higher than your own limits.

You’ll need to stay in contact with your insurance company. The claims process isn’t easy, and it may take a significant amount of time to resolve the claim and payout for the damage caused.

There are several ways this could play out. It’s possible that both your insurance and your friend’s insurance could be activated.

Your friend crashed your car, but it’s minor damage to your vehicle only

If your friend gets into an accident and only your car sustains minor damage, the claim will be filed against your policy under the collision portion.

This means that you will pay the deductible noted in your policy and your insurer will cover additional repair costs up to your limit. You can always ask your friend to pay the deductible.

Collision coverage is never required, so you may not have it. In that case, you will have to pay for the repairs out of pocket. Hopefully, your friend offers to help!

In this situation, your

insurance rates will likely increase

—even if your friend was the one driving.

Your insured friend crashed your car and caused a major accident with lots of damage

Let’s imagine a situation where your friend caused an accident that resulted in major property damage and bodily injury to others. The first type of coverage that comes into play is your own liability policy.

Liability has two parts:

bodily injury

and

property damage

Liability coverage follows the car first and the driver second. So, the car owner’s policy (yours) will cover the driver and the other vehicle’s passengers for bodily injury. The policy of the car owner (you) also covers property damage caused by your vehicle. It usually covers legal fees up to your limit if you get sued, too.

If you don’t have enough liability coverage when your friend causes a serious accident, the court is allowed to seize your possessions (including your home) and future income to recover damages and pay outstanding bills.

Alternatively, if your own coverage isn’t enough to pay for damages, your friend’s policy could kick in as secondary coverage. Yours will be exhausted first, then your friend’s. This is called "pro rata" and it’s a way of sharing costs.

If your friend was injured but has

personal injury protection

, they can claim against their own policy because PIP follows the driver first and the car second. If your friend doesn’t have coverage but you do, then they could claim against your PIP insurance to get the necessary care.

Key Takeaway If the accident caused lots of damage, it’s possible that both your insurance and your friend’s insurance could kick in to cover the costs.

Your friend crashed your car, did a ton of damage, AND they didn’t have insurance

This is a particularly bad situation. If the damages exceed your coverage level, then you are personally on the hook to pay for all remaining expenses related to medical fees, property damage, and legal bills.

Don’t let an uninsured person drive your car. All the damage will fall on you, and your rates will go up. The court could seize assets to pay for costs, including your retirement accounts and savings accounts.

If you know someone who is uninsured but still needs to drive, it’s best to recommend that they purchase a

non-owner policy

before loaning them your car.

MORE:

What happens if you’re caught driving with no insurance?

Your friend drives your car without permission and gets into an accident

In this case, there’s good news—at least for you. Since this wasn’t permissive use, you won’t be held accountable for costs.

If your friend has insurance, their policy will kick in first to cover damages. If your friend was uninsured, then you may need to use your own collision insurance to cover repair costs for your vehicle. Your liability coverage may be used to cover damage to someone else’s property.

Most insurance companies will assume that a friend had permission to drive your car unless there are clear signifiers that you didn’t give it. An example is if a friend sped away in your car after drinking and you didn’t give authorization. You may need to file a police report to corroborate unauthorized use for your insurer.

Key Takeaway If your friend was unlicensed or uninsured, they’ll have minimal protection in the event of an accident.

Will my insurance rates increase if a friend crashes my car?

Your insurance premium will almost certainly increase after an accident. The rate increase could be a few dollars a month or more than a 50% bump—it depends on the circumstances of the accident and your previous claims history.

The higher rate is likely to remain for about three to five years until you can prove you are a safe driver again.

Final tips

Don’t hand your keys over to just anyone. If your friend crashes your car, you could face legal problems, financial difficulties, and increased monthly insurance bills.

Check your policy to see if you have a permissive use or a named driver policy—and make sure your friends have insurance before you loan them your car.

If you’re facing higher rates, you might be able to save a little money by shopping around with different companies. However, you can expect higher-than-normal rates for a few years after the accident.

"After an accident, my policy was set to go up to $404 a month. I was almost ready to park my car and just start riding my bike! But
Jerry
went above and beyond to find me the best rate, and they ended up saving me over $200 per month." —Satisfied Jerry User

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