Driving Friends Truck, No Insurance Accident!?

Question

My friend had told me he had insurance and it covered all drivers.... We live in California by the way.... Well i got into an accident today on the freeway. It was stop and go traffic and I rear ended someone doing about 5mph. The damage wasnt bad.... but my friend all of the sudden tells me his truck isnt insured!!!! So now my friend lied 2 mos ago and I'm stuck in an accident. The cops wrote up a report, but I didn't get a ticket... The cop however said since I was driving the truck I would be held liable. What will end up happening with this? Does the insurance company go to court to get a judgement over probably 2k of damage? Do i loose my license or what?

Answer 1

I'll throw my two cents in as a long time insurance adjustor. When you're driving a car with no insurance that you don't own, and you cause an accident, insurance does follow the car. In your case that screws you but you may have an out here. If you have a car of your own that has insurance on it, YOU COULD TURN IN A CLAIM UNDER YOUR POLICY to get you out of this financial mess. Now, your rates are likely to got up but you would not have to bear the burden of dealing with the other person and paying them out of your pocket. Check with you agent on this. It's commonly referred to as a "driver other car" or DOC claim. State law may differ on this. If you don't want to call an agent, pick a claims office for a large insurance company and call it...ask for a liability adjuster to ask a general question of. Good luck.

Answer 2

There are some good and accurate answers here. Let me sort them out a bit.

1. Yes, the insurance follows the vehicle, not the driver. And you were driving with the owners permission.

2. The registered owner of the vehicle is responsible for any and everything that happens to his vehicle.

3. The registered owner of the vehicle is responsible for having mandatory insurance on the vehicle.

4. You owe no one anything. Relax.

Answer 3

You don't lose the license if you didn't get a summons. You are personally liable to pay for the other cars damage. The other guy will sue you if you don't pay, in which case the Court may make you pay a whole lot more that just the 2g's.

Best course is to pay the other guy. Really, it's your lying friend who should pay, but if you try to sue your ex pal, you will lose. Reason is, the Court will say YOU had the responsibility as the operator to verify the status of the vehicle before you drove it.

If your pal doesn't pay up, then you are screwed. If I were your pal and I did that to you, I would pay the damages. But not everybody is a stand-up guy like me.

Answer 4

As someone said about, insurance follows the vehicle- not the driver.

This being said- when a vehicle is uninsured- the same rule applies. As the owner did not take out insurance coverage he will personally be responsible for the damages regardless of if he was the at fault driver at the time or not in the vehicle at all.

I repeat- your friend is responsible not you. The other insurance will send a bill to him.

Answer 5

In Manitoba we have a little different system, and it would definitely have helped if you had it. If I had been the driver, and I had been told there was insurance on the vehicle, I would have been covered. We have basic insurance coverage on our driver licence here. In the event we unknowingly drive a vehicle that had cancelled or otherwise invalid insurance, the cover on the licence would come into play. In your case, you took the vehicle on good faith, but you got burned. The other driver's insurance company will probably fix his car, and subrogate against you. Depending on the wordings, you may have substitute vehicle coverage on your policy. My liability, $1,000,000, follows me to any substitute vehicle I drive in Canada or the US. As far as your licence goes, it really depends on what charges may have been laid, but I can't see you loosing it over what you have described.

Answer 6

First of all, insurance follows the vehicle, not the person
So, there will be no coverage for the other vehicle
If the other driver has uninsured motorist on their policy, they can file on their own policy. Now, the insurance company may go through a process of payment recovery from you. It just depends, different states have different guidelines.

Answer 7

Do you have insurance? If so, then the coverage on your vehicle will probably pick up as secondary coverage to what should have been on the vehicle you were driving.

If not, then the other person will use his/her own carrier and they will decide if they can recover from you. They may try to go after you and the owner.

Answer 8

you moreover mght shouldnt have surpassed-or enable the UNINSURED driving force bypass the different autos. They hit the guy it quite is their fault. no remember what, the twist of destiny replaced into your drivers fault and no-one elses. Did the sluggish motor vehicle veer into your lane-or shoulder because it replaced into? probable no longer, for this reason returned it replaced into your fault. Thats what you get for letting uninsured drivers force your motor vehicle. a minimum of you didnt kill all and sundry. I have no sympathy for uninsured drivers or people who enable them to force. And specific your coverage will cover the permissive use twist of destiny inspite of the undeniable fact that it quite is going to bypass on your checklist and make your coverage bypass up.

Answer 9

sorry i misunderstood that, if u bashed into someone thn u gotta pay,cuz appatently its the fault of the guy at the back.. or ur insurance has to pay, which you dont have, so try to get ur friend to split the cost with ya cuz he lied about having insurance...