Does car insurance cover additional drivers?

To make sure your car insurance covers you when you need it, it’s important to know who can drive your vehicle. The most important thing to remember is: if someone regularly drives your vehicle and is NOT listed on your policy, you risk not being covered in the event a claim. Insurers needs to know about regular drivers of a vehicle to be able to accurately assess the risk of that vehicle being involved in an incident.  

Can someone else drive my car?

It’s always best to check with your insurer as some will require anyone who drives your car to be listed on your policy. With Suncorp Insurance, you’re covered for both listed and unlisted drivers. However if the driver is inexperienced or under 25 years of age, there may be a higher excess to pay if they’re not listed on the policy.

Some important things to remember:

• If someone drives your car regularly and you don’t list them on your policy, this can affect the outcome of a claim if they’re involved in an incident with your vehicle.
• In the event of making a claim, any excess might only be applied if the unlisted driver is at fault or is unable to provide details of the other party.
• If an unlisted, regular driver of your car is less experienced than you, this could be an instance of what’s known as ‘fronting’. For instance, if a P-plater is not listed on their parents’ policy but regularly drives their car. 

What classifies as an additional driver?

An additional driver is someone who regularly uses your vehicle and is listed on your policy. One of the most common examples of this is if you put your children on your policy once they start driving your family car regularly. Adding regular drivers to your policy may mean they’re insured in the case of an event. Of course, there are terms and conditions that apply. Read your policy document for more on this. 

Note that with Suncorp Insurance, you don't need to list a learner driver as an additional driver.

Does it cost more to add drivers to my policy?

Sometimes it may cost more to add additional drivers to your policy. When you add a driver, we reassess the risk, including the additional driver, to determine I that additional driver affects your premium. For instance, if you’re adding a driver who is under 25 or a P-plate driver, this will most likely affect your premiums and you will likely incur additional excesses in certain situations. Learner drivers do not need to be listed.

Do I need to list everyone who drives my car?

You need to list anyone who drives your car regularly. For instance, if you have a friend who needed your car once in a single year to get some pot plants from the nursery, then you don’t need to add that driver to your policy. But if you have a family member or friend who tends to need your car more regularly, then you should consider adding them to your policy. Not doing so might result in a higher excess if you do need to make a claim.

How to add additional drivers to your policy

You can add or remove drivers at any time with your My Suncorp account. Once logged in, select your policy from the list of policies available then choose the ‘Update policy’ option. Select ‘Listed Drivers’ under the ‘Update my policy’ heading.

If your policy is due for renewal, you can still update your details this way. Once logged in, select your policy up for renewal and then choose the ‘Renew Now’ option. Select ‘update and pay’. From there, update ‘Listed Drivers’ under the ‘Listed Drivers’ heading.

What happens if an unlisted driver crashes my car?

As Suncorp Insurance, we cover both listed and unlisted drivers. If you have someone who is involved in an incident with your car and they’re not listed on your policy, you might have to pay one or more excesses when making a claim. This depends on who was driving your car. For instance, if they were under 25 at the time of driving, then you may have to pay an age excess or an inexperienced driver excess. While these excesses may still apply even when the driver is listed, the excess amount may be less.

To ensure you have the right cover for who is driving your car, get a quote for car insurance below. 

Get a quote for car insurance

Read more:

• The most common car insurance claims 
• What am I covered for when I'm off-road driving? 
• What may influence car insurance costs

Insurance issued by AAI Limited ABN 48 005 297 807 trading as Suncorp Insurance. Read the Product Disclosure Statement before buying this insurance. Go to suncorp.com.au for a copy. Target Market Determination is also available.  This advice has been prepared without taking into account your particular objectives, financial situations or needs, so you should consider whether it is appropriate for you before acting on it.