The big question is should you add your roommate or tenant to your auto insurance policy? The answer is yes, you should! Or at least list them on your policy if they are not going to ever drive any of your vehicles! Think of it this way, let’s pretend there is a big emergency and your car is the only one available in your drive way and your roommate has to drive to the emergency room. Let’s just say on the way to the ER they get into a fender bender in your car and they are not on your insurance policy. You might get in a big pickle with your insurance company for not letting them know other people of driving age live in your household. You should notify your car insurance company that you are renting out rooms in your house. Likely your auto insurance provider will then ask for the renters’ driver license numbers and other information on them. This would be true if the people were renters of rooms in your house or roommates of yours in an apartment.
If you don’t want to add your roommates or tenants to your car insurance policy, you may be able to add them to a named driver exclusion. Though it may seem odd to list someone not related to you on your car insurance policy, it is normal for car insurance companies to require a policyholder to list all other licensed drivers who reside in the same household. This means anyone you share the same address with: relatives, roommates, friends or strangers that rent out a room in your house.
People who live in your household have access to your car keys and vehicle, consequently your car insurance company wants to determine what type of risk it is being exposed to. Once your car insurance company is aware of all your household members, it’s up to state laws and the guidelines of your auto insurance provider to determine if the renters will have to listed on your policy or not.
If the renters don’t own their own vehicle, it would appear likely to an insurance company that the renters may use your car and so will normally want them listed on your policy as drivers. If the renters in your home won’t ever be allowed to drive your car, you should see about having them excluded from your policy. Lastly, If the renters eventually get their own vehicles and own car insurance policies, then it may be possible to leave them off of your policy by merely providing proof that the renters have their own policy in place. You may have to provide a copy of your policy to the renters’ auto insurance company, as well, so they don’t have to carry you as a driver on their car insurance policy.
