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Car insurance for elderly car owner who doesn't drive?

Mom has finally agreed to surrender her DL (at 99!) She has a car that is currently insured by Allstate costing her $300 a month (history of accidents). Should Mom continue the coverage if she wants her daily aide (or others) to drive the car? The aide has her own personal vehicle & her own insurance. Does the aide's insurance cover her or the car if she drive's my mom's car? Really appreciate any help & info on this.

Jun 20, 2018 Lake Worth, FL

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Ava Lynch

Insurance Analyst

Ava joined The Zebra as a writer and licensed insurance agent in 2016. She now works as a senior insurance contributor, providing insights and data a…

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  • 7+ years of Experience in the Insurance Industry

There's a couple of ways to go about handling this. First, you need to be careful about your mother's registration. Florida is usually pretty active with their registration and if she drops coverage, she risks having her registration suspended and the possibilities for fines. In this sense, dropping coverage isn't really an option.

Instead, I recommend having the aide added to the policy (if she will using the policy regularly) and transitioning your mother to an "additional interest". Because your mother's aide will be using the vehicle often, she needs to be a listed driver – this is the best way to ensure she will be covered using your mother's vehicle. There is a clause in many insurance policies known as "permissive use" which allows infrequent drivers the ability to use the policy without having to be added to the policy. However, it sounds like your mother's aide would be using the vehicle more often than this. This remains the same for anyone who uses the vehicle often – you and any siblings you have. I would contact Allstate and see if they have any company specifics for situations like this. However, it will most likely be similar to what I have outlined.

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