Car sharing is more and more widespread in France. It is not only economical, but also beneficial for the environment. However, before taking the plunge, certain precautions must be taken. What insurance for car-sharing? Follow the details.
What is car-sharing?
Car-sharing is more suitable for those who only use a car occasionally. It allows you to dispose of a vehicle for a period that you have determined in advance, without being the owner. Also known as "self-service car sharing", car sharing is available to all individuals. There are several types of car-sharing car rentals. The principle of car-sharing is like the developed self-service bicycle systems found in many major cities in France. It is different from traditional car rental. Indeed, car-sharing is ideal for short daily trips. As a rule, you can book it at any time and even at the last minute, whereas traditional car rental is often booked several days in advance.
Why take out car insurance?
Like any other land motor vehicle, a car-sharing car must be covered by its owner, whether it is rented by an individual or a company. A car-sharing car is driven by several people, so it is essential that it be covered by a more protective insurance policy. Also, in car-sharing, the driver's driving habits can be very different. It is therefore essential to take out highly protective insurance to cover all eventualities.
Which insurance for car-sharing?
There are several forms of car-sharing. Car-sharing organised by a company, car-sharing organised between individuals with an intermediary and car-sharing organised between individuals without intermediaries. In the first two cases, the rental is carried out by a company. For this reason, the contract includes insurance. The reduction/increase coefficient will not be affected, but you must be careful with deductibles which can be very high. In the case of organized car sharing between private individuals without an intermediary, it is the insurance of the vehicle owner that applies.
Insurance contracts are not accommodated to this system. It is therefore essential to inform one's insurer in order to take out the appropriate guarantees to cover the risk in the event of a loan. You can include in the contract secondary drivers who will be covered by the contract. For occasional drivers not mentioned in the contract, you must subscribe to the "flying loan" guarantee, which will give you the possibility to cover the damage caused, in case of a claim, to your vehicle. Please note that, regardless of the driver who makes the claim, your reduction/increase coefficient will be applied to the main driver who will be affected.