Expert: Ron Cercone - 3/2/2009

Question
Hey there...I was wondering if my insurance will cover the damages on my car. I am financing my '03 alero so i have full coverage, thing is, my boyfriend was the one driving my car at the time without me in it and he got into an accident. He has a suspended license and clearly no insurance..i was at work when this took place and had no idea he had my car. the police didnt even arrest him, they took his word that i "lent him" my car!! no one even contacted me to verify that he had my car and it was in an accident. also there was a witness that saw the accident happen and she told the cops that he was racing, so my car was automatically impounded for 7 days. i didnt call and report my car stolen b/c he told me when i got home from work that it was jus the bumper and he would fix it himself, but when i went to get my car out of the impound and saw the damages, they were way worse than just the bumper! so i want to know if my insurance would cover this? please help!!

Answer
Hello Haley,

I would assume they would cover it. Your story sounds reasonable to me. Look in your policy under "exclusions", under the collision and comprehensive "Damage to Your Auto" section, and ask your agent before you report the claim if there is any exclusion for damage from "racing" or "speed contests" or non permissive users. And see if such an exclusion only applies if the "named insured", you, were driving and check if it applies to "permissive users". Most policies don't have these exclusions for damage to your car. Since the policies don't say "who" is covered for collision and comp, that means your car damage is covered for anyone driving the car, even a thief. If you lost your policy, there are over 80 sample policies for free download at UClaim.com . Don't confuse the policy Liability exclusions with the collision and comp exclusions. Most policies say you must report the claim to them "promptly" after the accident. So report it within a day or two, if you intend to report it.