I failed to plan ahead, its all your fault!

[TimmyHate]

One of the things we do is get feedback on interactions (customer surveys). Those with a very negitive score are called MARC's (Most At Risk Customers). Every week or so management and Seniors get a list of the feedback...and in todays there was this gem

Have the after hours staff authorised to update policies. We needed our Daughter to bring our car back from the airport when we were travelling to Ireland but realised on the Saturday night she wasn't covered (and we were leaving at 6am the next morning). We rang (Insurer) straight away to get her on (as she is under 25). They said it was not possible to add her to our policy until 10am the next day...she then had to wait at the airport for both the insurance and for us to ring (from Australia) til after 10am (an extra 4 plus hours) before she could drive our car home. Very frustrating. I always thought that insurance was a 24 hour thing. The after hours lady told me it was only for emergencies...well it is quite important to be able to get cover for an under 21 driver quickly if you need it!

What is the mantra: A lack of planning on your behalf is not an emergency on our behalf.

[Tama]

She might have thought of that before letting her daughter drive...

She could always have driven back without insurance, but seeing how sensible her mother is I doubt she is capable of driving sensibly enough not to be pulled over.

[Luna Baby]

I'm not sure where the 'insured' is from, but where we live (KY), anyone is covered on my auto as long as I've given them permission to drive and they have a valid license. I'm sure rules/regulations could be different elsewhere.

[NecessaryCatharsis]

I'm not sure where the 'insured' is from, but where we live (KY), anyone is covered on my auto as long as I've given them permission to drive and they have a valid license. I'm sure rules/regulations could be different elsewhere.

With my insurance anyone over 25 with a valid license is insured. Adding my 17 year old cousin for a week cost something like 10$, because she already had her own insurance. Adding someone under 25 who wasn't already insured, or changing my insurance to any licensed driver would come close to doubling the cost for the year.

[TimmyHate]

Policies here vary. These clients for example:

Terms and Conditions
Exclude - Under 25 Drivers (Not Named)
Warranted that there is no cover under this policy while the vehicle is in the care, custody or control of any person under the age of 25 other than those noted as named drivers on the policy schedule.

Note that CHOSE this to reduce their premiums. However if they hadn't chosen this, anyone can as long as they have a valid licence, but their excess does go up:

Vehicle Excess $300
Your excess is the total of the Vehicle Excess plus any Additional Excess shown in Terms and Conditions and:
1. an additional $450 if the driver or person in charge of the vehicle is over 21 years but under 25 years of age; or
2. an additional $700 if the driver or person in charge of the vehicle is under 21 years of age; or
3. an additional $700 if the driver or person in charge of the vehicle has not held a current Full New Zealand Drivers Licence for all of the preceding 12 months

We charge the highest of those excesss

[MoonCat]

So, basically it comes down to, "You should have someone there 24/7 to do whatever I want, whenever I want it, because it's convenient for me and doesn't require any thinking, advance planning, or common sense on my part. Is that so much to ask?"

[ADeMartino]

I'm not sure where the 'insured' is from, but where we live (KY), anyone is covered on my auto as long as I've given them permission to drive and they have a valid license. I'm sure rules/regulations could be different elsewhere.

You might want to double check that, just to be safe. I don't know about Kentucky specifically, but a lot of states have recently made changes to their financial responsibility laws. If you own and drive a car, you must have insurance - that's nothing new. But if someone else drives the car not only do you have to maintain coverage on the vehicle, but the DRIVER has to be insured as well - either as a rider on your policy, or on his/her own separate policy (depending on whether the driver is a family member and resides in the same household or not).

The bottom line in an 'insured vehicle, uninsured driver' scenario is the driver can be charged with an FRA violation (which usually means a suspension and heavy fines), and the vehicle's owner can be sued for damages arising from an accident - all this DESPITE the vehicle being insured. NOT a happy situation.

[thatcrazyredhead]

So, basically it comes down to, "You should have someone there 24/7 to do whatever I want, whenever I want it, because it's convenient for me and doesn't require any thinking, advance planning, or common sense on my part. Is that so much to ask?"

Bullseye. I take new claims calls, and I've heard people calling in mad as a wet hen because the adjuster (who is the only one who can authorize a rental car) isn't in the office at 7pm and they have NO way to get to work TOMORROW! Never mind that they didn't have rental on their policy, or that the accident happened a week ago and they could have tried to arrange something long before now. "What do I even pay you people for?!?!" Usually, liability coverage.

[Seshat]

In Aussieland, there're two major forms of insurance. There's 'third party compulsory', which is attached to the car, and while you can choose which insurance company covers you, you can't choose whether or not to have it. This insurance is required by the state, and covers injury to people.

It doesn't cover injury to property - not your car, not another car, not that very expensive road bridge you damaged, nor the house you ran into, nor whatever else might have been harmed by the accident.

Third party compulsory is required for a vehicle to be on the road, but your car is covered for it no matter who's driving.
Actually: scratch that. I don't know if it's covered if the vehicle is stolen, but I don't think the state would go after the owner if an accident occurred during a theft. Probably.

Other insurances are between the insurance company and the customer. And there's a wide range of contracts, to suit clients with a wide range of budgets and insurance desires. And this is where limitations on who's driving come in.

So yeah, little Sally who's 19 can legally drive your car home as long as the car has third party compulsory (and she's legally licenced, not over the limit, yadda yadda).
But whether your car is insured against third party property damage, against theft, against damage to the car itself, against anything stored in the car being damaged or stolen - all of that is between you and your insurance company.

[Evannah]

Oh my God. Did I seriously just read that? That was a massive fail on their part yet they are trying to blame you lot. Hahahahahaha. OMG.

[prjkt]

Those excess details sound very familiar... Had a minor accident where I was at fault, almost a grand down the drain... But better than the whole cost of the repair.

I was lucky with my premiums though, car was registered under my dad's name, insured as "X surname" - X being my first initial, which was the same as my dad's - kept the price down

[icmedia]

At least in my neck of the woods (Ohio), insurance follows the car, not the driver. In other words, if I (an Insured) drive my friend's car (also an Insured), HIS insurance covers it if I crash. Likewise, I cannot purchase insurance without a vehicle. I can, however, secure a personal bond, but that is something that is neither cost effective nor required by law to drive someone else's vehicle in my state.

Of course, the laws and regulations vary greatly from state to country to star system, so please don't follow my words to the point of criminality in your own jurisdiction.

[Luna Baby]

You might want to double check that, just to be safe. I don't know about Kentucky specifically, but .......

I'm covered....worked for the agent that wrote my policy at one time. Still same agent. Policy documents even state that coverage is extended to any licensed driver that has permission to drive. I DO have to add my teenage son as a listed/rated driver or risk getting cancelled. They would cover any accident in my vehicle but then promptly cancel me. But, a visiting relative or friend, even from another state can drive my car, insured, as long as they have a valid driver's license and my permission.