The Risks of Letting Someone Borrow Your Car in Ontario

Risks of Borrowing Your Car in Ontario

Letting someone borrow your car can have massive consequences. Before you ever lend out your vehicle, whether to a friend or a family member, it is important to know the full extent of what you are putting at stake.

Insurance Follows the Vehicle

As a rule of thumb, insurance follows the vehicle, not the driver. This means that as the owner of the vehicle, you are responsible for who drives your car, and are legally responsible for any negligence.

Regular Drivers

The major issue is if you are letting someone borrow your car on a more regular basis.  If this is the case, then your car insurance company can refuse to cover if they are in an accident and if you didn’t let them know there was another driver on the vehicle. Every single extra driver changes the level of risk. For this reason, if you’re letting someone regularly borrow your car, it’s very important that let your insurance company know. Insurance is not an area where you want to cut costs – it will backfire!

New Drivers

There are many regulations in place to make sure that new drivers (and those on the road with them) stay safe. One of the major issues that we’ve covered on the blog is young drivers and alcohol.

If you suspect that your under-21 or G2 driver will be having any alcohol at all do not let them borrow your car. This of course is the case with drivers of any age and experience level, but be especially careful with young adults. If they have any alcohol at all and are in an accident with your vehicle you are held responsible and it is your insurance coverage that plummets.

Furthermore, if someone is seriously injured and your insurance coverage drops, then your personal assets are suddenly stake.

Overall, here’s what you need to know:

  • Always add regular drivers to your insurance
  • If you suspect someone will be drinking don’t let them borrow your car
  • Let your young adult know the full consequences of their actions
  •  When in doubt, don’t lend it out!

Have questions about an accident? Call a personal injury lawyer such as the team at Auger Hollingsworth at 613-233-4529 or request our book Injured Victim’s Guide to Fair Compensation.

About the Author: Brenda Hollingsworth

Brenda Hollingsworth co-founded Ottawa’s Auger Hollingsworth in 2005 with her husband Richard Auger. Together, their mission was to create a personal injury law firm for Eastern Ontario that is unrivalled in the province for customer service and legal expertise. Brenda was named an Ottawa Business Journal Forty Under 40 award recipient and took home the Women’s Business Network’s Businesswoman of the Year award in the Professional category. She was also recognized as one of Ottawa Life Magazine’s “Top 50 People in the Capital.” She is often quoted as an expert and has appeared in media outlets such as CTV, The Globe and Mail, National Post, Ottawa Citizen, Sun Media, CBC, Toronto Star, Montreal Gazette, CFRA and many legal publications.

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