In California, non-owner car insurance costs an average of $461 annually. It's an affordable option to consider if you don't have a car but still need regular transportation or if you recently sold your car but still need car insurance
. Non-owner car insurance is a type of insurance that provides liability coverage for drivers who do not own their own vehicle but frequently drive—whether in borrowed vehicles, rented cars, or via car-sharing services. Here's what it covers, how much it tends to cost, and how to obtain it in California.
4.7/5 rating on the App Store | Trusted by 5+ million customers and 7 million cars4.7/5 app rating | Trusted by 5M+ drivers What does non-owner car insurance cover?
Car insurance for non-owners is, basically, a type of liability insurance. It tends to cover medical bills and car repairs for other drivers if you are at fault in an accident and it serves as supplemental coverage to the car owner's auto insurance policy.
Other common types of coverage in California include personal injury protection
, medical payments coverage
, and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage
. Since your policy covers you rather than a specific car, the only major types of coverage that aren't available with non-owner car insurance are collision
and comprehensive coverage
. California's minimum liability requirements are $15,000 per person and $30,000 per accident for bodily injury liability
and just $5,000 for property damage liability
. If the owner of the car you're driving has only a basic liability policy, you may face steep costs in the aftermath of an accident, ranging from auto repairs for other drivers that surpass the liability limits on the car owner's policy to your own medical expenses. Average cost of non-owner car insurance in California
In California, the cost of a non-owner car insurance policy is surprisingly low. Drivers with clean records pay an average of just $461 per year for coverage. If you get a serious violation, like a DUI
, your average annual cost could go up substantially—to around $932, on average. With a good driving record, that's a lot less than the cost of a traditional car insurance policy in California, and a lot less than a full-coverage
policy that includes collision and comprehensive coverage. The best California auto insurance companies for non-owner car insurance
Only GEICO
, State Farm
, and Nationwide
offer non-owner car insurance to new customers in all 50 states. If you want to get quotes for non-owner car insurance, these three companies are a good place to start! A number of insurance companies that focus on high-risk drivers also offer SR-22 insurance for non-owner drivers. If your driving record isn't perfect, you can get decent non-owner car insurance from companies like Dairyland and The General
. Want to know how much you might spend for a non-owners policy from some of California's lowest providers? Have a look at the table below.
Cheapest California non-owner car insurance companies
| | | Average annual SR-22 premium | Average monthly SR-22 premium |
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7M+Cars Garaged
Who needs a non-owner car insurance policy?
Non-owner car insurance policies are intended to cover a few main scenarios:
If you don't own a car but rent cars or use car-sharing services, like Zipcar, often, you may want to buy extra coverage in addition to any rental car insurance.
If you need to buy SR-22 insurance
to get your driver's license back, the best (and cheapest) manner to do it is usually with a non-owner car insurance policy. If you often use someone else's car, non-owner car insurance could protect you from a lot of serious financial liability.
If you won't have a car for a while, non-owner insurance can help you avoid a lapse in coverage
that could cause your insurance rates to go up in the future.
If you occasionally borrow a friend's car, you won't need to buy non-owner car insurance because you'll be covered by your friend's policy. And if you only rent a car once or twice a year for weekend getaways, you can get by with just the rental car insurance coverage
that the rental agency or your credit card company provides. If you need to use someone else's car to get around in California, make sure to ask the owner about the types of car insurance
and coverage limits they have. How to get non-owner car insurance in California
In California, you can purchase non-owner car insurance if you have a valid driver's license but don't own or regularly use a car. Insurance quotes can be obtained either by calling a provider directly or by using a quote comparison tool.
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