Written by Q: Do I have to mention my roommates to my insurance company even if they don’t drive my car?
AIS Answer: An insurance company requires you to name all licensed drivers in your residence. So, yes you are supposed to give them the names (and sometimes drivers license number) of the licensed residents in your home.
The way insurance companies see it is that a licensed driver that has access to a vehicle will have the opportunity to drive it. Insurance companies can only provide a rate after assessing risk and if they don’t know the people that will be driving the vehicle, they can’t accurately assess the risk.
Insurance companies believe that at some point in time a roommate or family member will drive a vehicle they insure and they want to protect their investment. It’s really no different than the assumption they make that if you don’t carry auto insurance you would still drive your car. While it may not be exactly the case for you because you maintain insurance and don’t let anyone else drive your car – they don’t that and honestly won’t take your word for it.
An insurance company may ask you to exclude roommates from your policy, or verify that they have current auto insurance of their own. In the end, this is just a little insurance for them that they won’t have to pay a claim on a person that isn’t factored into the insurance policy.
