Driving Other Cars (DOC) insurance: Your guide to staying covered

What is 'Driving Other Cars' (DOC) insurance?

Driving other cars, or DOC, cover is a clause on your car insurance that means you can drive someone else's car.

It's less common now. That's because driving other cars cover exposed insurers to more risk.

Some insurers do offer it, but more often than not, it's third-party only. This means that only damage to other people's cars, property and their injuries are covered. Any damage to you or the car your driving isn't covered.

It's also laid out in most insurance policies with this kind of cover that DOC should only be used in emergencies - not for sharaing a drive or other regular driving.

Do I have Driving Other Cars (DOC) cover on my policy?

You can usually find this in your car insurance documents, or if you can't find them, you can ring your insurer and ask them.

There are conditions for DOC cover. It's only available if:

• You do not own the car

• The car is covered by an existing insurance policy

• You have permission to drive the car

• You have not hired the car

• You are over a certain age, often 25-years-old

The DOC cover typically only applies to the policyholder. That means only the policyholder could drive someone else's car, not any of the named drivers.

What are my options for driving a car I don't own?

You've got a few options if you want to drive a car you don't own:

Become a named driver on the policy

The policyholder could add you as a named driver if you're using the other car regularly. But with this type of policy, the policyholder has to be the one who does the majority of the driving. It's illegale for the named driver to do more driving than the policyholder. This is known as fronting.

But temporary car insurance

Temporary or short-term car insurance is a standalone policy that insures you to drive another car (with the owner's permission). Most temporary car insurance policies are fully comprehensive, so your car is covered if you have an accident, as well as your injuries. Some temporary car insurance policies also protect the owner's no claims bonus. This is reassuring for the car's owner if you get into an accident while you're borrowing the car.

Buying your own car insurance

In some cases, it's worth buying a separate policy - for example, if you're driving a company car or borrowing a car for a long time. That way, you can drive your car as much as you'd like without worrying about fronting or running out of cover. Some insurers even offer specific cover for people who don't own the vehicle.

Can I insure a car that I don't own?

Yes, but you have to tell the insurer you're not the owner or registered keeper when you apply.

Some insurers will only offer you cover as the main driver if you're also the registered keeper of the car. But it's worth shopping around as you can get insurance for a car you don't own - it's just not as common.

When you buy car insurance on a car you don't own, you'll usually be asked to confirm who is the owner and registered keeper of the vehicle. Some insurers will only cover you to drive a car you do not own if it belongs to:

• Your spouse, partner or civil partner.

• A parent.

• Your employer.

What happens if I drive without the correct insurance?

It's a legal requirement to have the correct car insurance. If you don't, you could get a £300 fine and 6 points on your licence. Your car insurance will be much more expensive in the future too. It's important to remember that it's not the car that's insured, it's the driver.

That why it's worth triple checking that you've got the right type of car insurance policy - don't risk a fine, points on your licence and higher insurance premiums in the future.

Can I insure two cars in my name?

Yes, you can, if you own two cars and you are the main driver, you can insure them.

We mentioned fronting earlier in this guide. You need to make sure you are the genuine main driver, and main user of the car, not any other named drivers on the policy. Just be aware of this when you're insuring more than one car.

Buying lots of different policies might be quite hard to keep track of. Multi-car policies insure multiple cars under one insurance policy. That means less renewal dates to keep track of, and sometimes it can work out cheaper than several different car insurance policies.