how illegal is it to let someone else drive your rental car?

Sorry if this has been asked and answered elsewhere -- I'm not having much luck with the search function...

My question is whether letting someone else in your party drive the rental car is really breaking important rules or if it's something just commonly done? And what liabilities you face if an accident happens? (which is the only situation where I can see it matters)

Is it just a matter between you and the rental company, or the law too?

thank you all!

It depends. Since you signed a rental _contract_, letting somebody who isn't authorized by that contract drive your car might be considered a breach of contract, which is a civil matter. Of course, depending on the case, there could be other issues, such as theft or such, that might be brought up.

The worst that could happen? Hertz could sue you for a contract violation (unlikely). They could and probably would add you to their do not rent list if they found out.

It's a risk vs. reward thing. The risk is probably rather small.

Also, if you are in violation of the contract and in the event of an accident, you could be liable for any damages, and your own insurance company may deny payment because the contract is invalid.

Well, forget about what Hertz would do because whether they are an additional authorized driver or not, what will happen in 99.99% of cases is:

-Your insurance company will deny your claim because you were not driving the vehicle.

-The driver's insurance company will deny the claim because they are not legally responsible for the car...you are.

-You're screwed. If you still care what Hertz will do after finding out that you owe the amount of the car then Hertz, at the very least, will put you on their Do-Not-Rent list and if you show up at any Hertz counter you will get a nice, "Thanks but we don't want your business."

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If you really need someone to drive the rental car other than your spouse then you should always accept LDW & LIS with those rentals & declare them as drivers. It is expensive but if the car gets in an accident you will thank yourself over and over again. The only exception to this would be if you are renting for business and are with a company where LDW & liability are included in the rate and fellow employees are automatically considered authorized operators.

Who is the other person? Some contracts automatically allow family members (above 25 y/o) or business colleagues. You will need to read the contract fine print.

ahhhhh...the Herz "Black List" does exsist that is a fact. I think as long as the person who was driving had insurance coverage you would ok

You won't.

Incorrect, the other driver would be driving a vehicle illegally, under an invalid contract, their (or your) insurance company will offer ZERO protection. Both people would be screwed (renter and person driving illegally).

Just look at the front of the yellow rental jacket BIG WARNING IN RED

"Dont lose your rental priveleges allowing unauthorized drivers may result in loss all insurance coverages"

We had a customer that would rent every week from us, we would always present her the rental jacket, "These are your terms and condition of the rental" She would get smart and say everytime oh i already know them my heart. Apparently she didn't, she let her 18 year old niece drive a brand new car down the car and her niece hit another driver and totaled the brand new hertz car. Come to find out both insurances denied coverages for both parties(renter and niece). She probably had to file for bankruptcy, not many people have 20k just laying around these days

BTW a spouse is automatically authorized, right? Or is it just on AAA CDPs? Or just in the state of CA?
I remember checking this long time ago but can't recall any details now...

It depends on the rental agency, state and CDP/discount being used.

A spouse is automatically authorized for #1 Club members.

A spouse is free to add for AAA but is NOT automatic and I believe that is also the case for California.

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The way that these are broken down is:

Authorized Operator: A person who is automatically qualified to drive the rental without needing to present themselves to Hertz.

Additional Authorized Operator: A person who needs to be present at the Hertz counter with the renter in order to be added on. A fee applies for these types of drivers (Except in CA) but several CDP's waive the fee.

In all of these situations, authorized operators and additional authorized operators do not extend your personal insurance coverage to the additional drivers nor will the insurance of the additional drivers cover you.

It some situation, you're correct, in others, you aren't.

You can't make a general statement about insurance like that. People have different policies with different rules, and there are certainly situations in which your personal insurance covers other drivers besides your spouse.

And they might even do so if they're driving the car that they aren't authorized to drive. Then some people have umbrella liability policies. It's too complicated to give a single answer.

I heard a similar story from my neighborhood Enterprise. Once when I was there, the police called the branch because they stopped someone in Brooklyn for going 75 in a 50, and wanted to confirm that the renter was allowed to use the car. The agent checked the computer for the rental number and confirmed it for the officer. When he hung up the phone, the agent seemed completely nonchalant. When I asked what that was about, he shrugged and told me the story. The renter pays the ticket fine, so not his problem.

Then another agent who had heard our conversation said that something similar but worse happened a while back. A few months ago, the police had called, saying the renter was going 85 in a 55 and wrecked the car. This was with the parents' 18 year old son, and the kid wasn't even supposed to be driving it in the first place. This agent for some reason never found out what happened afterward.

Why would an insurance company pay for a car that the driver wasn't authorized to drive? Why would an umbrella policy cover you if you were doing something that wasn't authorized? The renter will get screwed in this situation 99.99% of the time.