Lending your car is fine. Not listing the people who drive it is where the trouble starts.
A friend borrows the car for an afternoon and ICBC has cover for that. Your partner, your son at home, the person who works for you, or anyone who drives it regularly is a different matter, and those people have to be on the policy by name. The gap only shows up after a crash.
Ask us who should be listed Read the short answer firstA visiting friend is normally covered.
Anyone living with you must be listed.
Driving it often makes someone a listed driver.
Can someone else drive my car in British Columbia?
Yes, with your permission. ICBC insures the vehicle rather than the driver, so a friend who borrows it once is normally covered. The question is not whether they may drive it. The question is whether they should have been listed.
ICBC sells something called Unlisted Driver Protection for the genuinely occasional borrower. In ICBC’s own words, if an unlisted driver causes a crash in your car, “you could face a financial consequence unless you have Unlisted Driver Protection”. What catches people out is how narrow that protection is. It is built for the visiting friend, not for the people who are around your car every week.
ICBC names the drivers the protection does not cover, and the list is wider than most owners expect. Anyone in the household of the registered owner. Anyone in the household of the principal driver. An employee of the registered owner. Anyone who drives any of your vehicles regularly. Anyone who has already caused a crash in your car. Those people have to be listed by name, and if one of them crashes while unlisted, ICBC applies a separate charge on top of everything else. Read ICBC on Unlisted Driver Protection (opens in a new tab).
Four people owners forget to list.
The new driver in the house
A son or daughter who passes a test and starts borrowing the car. They live with you, so occasional protection was never written for them. They belong on the policy from the first drive.
The partner who moved in
Nothing about the car changed, but the household did. Once somebody lives at the address and has access to the keys, ICBC treats them as a household driver.
The person who works for you
If your vehicle is registered to you and an employee takes it out, even now and then, they are named on ICBC’s exclusion list. Small businesses run into this one constantly.
The regular borrower
A parent who takes it every Thursday, a friend who uses it for a weekly shift. There is no magic number of trips. If it is a pattern rather than a favour, list them.
Three cars, three ordinary arrangements.
The car nobody thought about
A teenager gets a licence in March. Nobody calls the broker, because the car is still the parents’ car. The crash in June is the first time anyone reads the policy.
The van and the part-time helper
A one-person trade takes on a hand for the busy months and lends him the van. He is an employee of the registered owner, which is exactly the case the protection was written to exclude.
The second crash
A friend borrowed the car, had a small collision, and it was sorted out. The next time he borrows it, he is no longer an occasional driver in ICBC’s eyes.
The questions that come up at the counter.
Does listing another driver always cost more?
Not always, and where it does it is usually far less than the charge for an unlisted driver crash. A driver with a long clean record can be added without much change at all. Ask before you assume.
My friend visits from out of province for a week. Do I list them?
That is close to the case the occasional protection was written for. Tell us the details, because how long they are staying and whether they are living at the address both matter.
What actually happens if an unlisted driver crashes?
The claim is still handled. The consequence lands on you as the owner, as a separate charge that ICBC applies on top of the usual effect of a crash. We would rather you never met it.
My adult child moved out. Do they come off?
Tell us when they go, and tell us if they come back. A policy should describe the household as it is now, not as it was when the car was bought.
Can I do this without coming into a branch?
Tell us what needs changing and we will tell you what can be handled remotely and what needs you at a counter. Delta is open seven days if a Sunday is easier.
Two that sit next to this on the same site: what your landlord’s policy does not cover, and staff driving their own cars for work. Also worth a look: whether home insurance covers a boat or RV.
Not the question you had? Tell us who drives the car and we will read the policy with you. Use the short contact form.
Get the names right before the crash, not after it.
It takes one conversation to check who is on your policy, and it is the cheapest insurance conversation you will ever have.