Coverage Without a Car

A non-owner policy provides liability coverage for a driver who does not own a vehicle. It is a narrow product, it is frequently misunderstood, and for the right person it solves a problem nothing else does.

What it is

Liability coverage attached to you rather than to a vehicle. It responds when you are driving a vehicle you do not own and do not have regular access to, up to the limits you choose — with California's statutory minimum under Insurance Code section 11580.1b as the floor, as with any policy.

What it does not do — read this part carefully

• It does not cover any vehicle's damage. There is no comprehensive or collision, because there is no vehicle attached. If you damage the car you are driving, this policy does not pay for it.
• It does not cover a car available to you regularly. If there is a vehicle in your household you drive whenever you like, that is not what this product is for, and a claim in those circumstances may not be covered.
• It does not cover a car you own. Buy a vehicle and you need a standard policy.
• It is generally secondary to any coverage on the vehicle being driven, though how that works varies — ask your carrier.

Those limitations are the whole reason the product exists and is priced as it is. Someone selling it as general coverage is misdescribing it.

Who it genuinely suits

• Someone who does not own a car but drives borrowed or rented vehicles from time to time.
• Someone between vehicles who still drives now and then.
• Someone who needs an SR-22 filing but does not own a vehicle — this is one of the more common reasons people ask about it.
• Someone who wants their own liability limits when driving a car whose owner carries only the state minimum.

That second one is underrated. Continuous coverage is one of the most valuable things you can build, and a non-owner policy can keep the streak alive during a period without a car.

The limits question

Same analysis as any other policy. The minimum is the floor; whether it is right for you depends on what you have to protect and what you could pay above it. If you are regularly driving other people's cars, note that their limits may be the state minimum too — your own coverage may be what stands behind you.

The main Auto World Insurance Services site answers the follow-up questions in its guide to California's 30/60/15 minimum insurance limits.

Questions to ask before buying one

1. "How does this respond relative to the coverage on the car I am driving?"
2. "What counts as a vehicle 'available for regular use', and would anything in my situation fall into that?"
3. "Does this satisfy an SR-22 filing requirement, and will you file it?"
4. "What happens when I buy a car — how do I convert this?"

Question two is the one to be precise about. It is where non-owner policies most often fail to cover a claim, and the definition matters more than the price.

Tell us how you actually drive and we will tell you honestly whether a non-owner policy fits or whether you need something else.