There are situations where you have auto insurance but not on all the vehicles you own are on the policy. You may have a vehicle which isn’t used on public roads or isn’t driven. Like, like a truck used on your farm land, your kid’s car stored while they’re in college, etc. But there may be occasional times when you need to drive that car on public roads to get it serviced or whatever. What would happen if you caused an accident while driving it and the car wasn’t on your policy?
I assume that your insurance wouldn’t cover any damage to the car if it’s not on your policy, but what sort of liability would you have if you caused an accident?
You are responsible for any damage you cause. If you’re insured, the insurance company will cover the damage up to the level of liability under the policy, minus the deductible. If you’re uninsured, you cover all of the damage yourself. So if you cause $50,000 in damage with an uninsured vehicle, you have to pay $50,000 to the injured party.
It’ll depend on the insurer. My parents had a car that was parked some time around 1997* and gradually decayed into a pile of rust, weeds, and bees. Eventually it was pretty obviously not driveable, while I was old enough to start driving and jack up their insurance rates. To drop that car from the insurance policy, my parents had to sign all sorts of statements swearing that the car was completely immobile and acknowledging that the insurer would never ever cover any incident relating to that car (probably including liability though I didn’t read the paperwork myself).
Individual policies will vary, but I think the usual general rule is that liability coverage follows the driver but collision coverage does not. In other words, you might have coverage for the damage to the other car and any harm to the people therein, but damage to the car you’re driving would not be covered. I may be wrong.
Disclaimer: This is not legal advice, and I am not your lawyer. This is just anonymous speculation.
First of all, your insurance has no effect whatsoever on whether you are liable for damage. Get that idea out of your head. If you cause an accident, you are liable for the damage that you cause.
Your insurance company expects you to declare any vehicle that is “furnished or available for your regular use” on your policy. If you cause damage while driving a vehicle that was furnished and available for your regular use, that you did not declare on the policy, your insurer will refuse coverage. This would include your farm truck that you oh-so-seldom take on public roads. You will be liable for any damage you cause and you will have to pay for it yourself.
In the case of your away-at-college child’s car, that car is away most of the time, so you would be covered. Likewise in the case of any car that you borrow and drive on a rare basis–a rental car, or your neighbor’s car that she loans you while yours is in the shop, or suchlike. Those cars are not furnished and available for your regular use so you are not expected to declare them.
I’m covered in any car I drive, for liability. Collision stays with the car on my policy. However, my insurance policy covers any drivers that drive my car, liability and collision, regardless of what insurance they have.