Maybe you have a roommate with a suspended license or an adult child with too many speeding tickets living at home. If so, you might consider adding excluded drivers to your auto insurance policy. Since insurers would consider these individuals at high risk of being involved in an accident, they might increase your auto premiums. But you may be able to get around higher premiums by listing them as excluded drivers on your policy.

Find out more about excluded drivers, how to add them, and how they impact your car insurance coverage.

An excluded driver is someone who lives in your household whom you’ve specifically told your insurer not to cover under your policy. Their name will be listed as “excluded” in your policy documents.

You can generally lend your vehicle to family members, household members, and friends. If they borrow your car and cause an accident, your auto insurance will cover them. But if you list a household member as an excluded driver, you’re telling your insurance company that they won’t be operating your vehicle. If an excluded driver has an accident while driving your car, your liability coverage might not pay for resulting injuries or property damage.

The main reason to exclude a driver from your car insurance policy is to save money on auto premiums. Here are some common situations where it could make sense to exclude certain drivers:

You may live with people you simply don’t want using your car, such as a roommate or adult sibling. While many policies will automatically extend coverage to occasional drivers — or even require you to add other adults living in the same home — naming an excluded driver means that person cannot legally drive your vehicle.

A new or inexperienced driver, such as a teenager, can wreak havoc on your premiums, especially if they get in an accident or rack up traffic citations. Instead of adding them to your existing coverage, you can name them as an excluded driver and then purchase an individual policy in just their name, customizing the coverage limits to their vehicle.

When there are other adults in your home, your carrier will typically want you to add them to the policy as a named insured or rated driver. If they have a driving history of traffic violations, car accidents, DUIs, or have had their driver’s license suspended in the past, that poor driving record can come back to bite you in the form of higher premiums. Consider excluding this high-risk driver from your coverage and having them buy their own policy for their car.

You may choose to exclude a driver from your coverage if they’ve filed too many insurance claims in the past, even if those claims were on another policy or with another carrier. Insurance providers look at claims history when rating drivers and calculating premiums, so excluding them from your policy can save you money.

Every car insurance company has its own process for driver exclusion on a policy. In most cases, you’ll be asked to sign and submit a driver exclusion form as part of the process.

Not all states allow you to name an excluded driver, or they put limitations on which drivers can be included. Other states require that a driver obtain their own auto coverage before you can exclude them.

Each insurer will have its own rules about excluded drivers as well. Some insurance companies prohibit policyholders from listing an excluded driver, or they require the excluded driver to show proof of cover.

Keep in mind: Excluding a driver from coverage is different from removing them from your policy. When you remove a driver, you’re usually telling your carrier that the person is no longer a member of your household, but they’re still allowed to drive your vehicle on occasion and would be covered by your insurance if they got into an accident. But when you exclude a driver, you agree that the person will never drive your vehicle and won’t be covered by your policy.

You should generally list all members of your household on your auto policy, including:

• Your spouse

• Live-in partners

• Teens age 14 and up

• Young adult children

• Other family members who live with you

• Roommates who are allowed to use your vehicle

Not all household members will be considered rated drivers, so they won't affect your premium. For example, if your elderly parent lives with you and no longer drives, they may be listed as a non-driver on the policy. Or if your adult child moved back home but has their own insured vehicle, they may be listed as “other insurance” in your policy documents.

Learn more: Car insurance rates by age

However, you may need to list some individuals on your policy even if they don’t live in your household if they regularly drive your vehicle. Some examples include:

• Adult children who attend college away from home

• Family members on military deployment

• Friends who sometimes use your car

• A nanny or caregiver who uses your vehicle to take your kids to and from school

If an excluded driver takes your vehicle and gets in an accident, it really comes down to the state and the individual policy.

If they’re at fault, they (and possibly you) may be liable for losses the other driver incurred.

If the other driver is deemed at fault for the accident, there’s a good chance that their liability policy will cover any losses incurred, even if the excluded driver wasn’t supposed to be behind the wheel. The insurance adjusters will determine this following the at-fault accident.

Read more: How much does car insurance increase after an accident?

With that said, if you name someone as an excluded driver and then allow them to drive your vehicle, there will be repercussions. At the very least, as the policyholder, you may be required to add that individual to your own auto insurance as an authorized driver. You can also expect your premiums to rise.

Once you’ve excluded a driver from your insurance policy, you can’t allow them to drive your vehicle under any circumstances, including emergencies.

If you’ve excluded a driver under your policy and they get into an accident, they generally wouldn’t be covered by your insurance. Both you and the excluded driver could be liable for paying for the costs of any bodily injury or property damage they cause out of pocket. However, if you can prove the excluded driver stole your car, your insurance might cover it.

Learn more: What to do after an accident: A step-by-step guide

Both you, as the policyholder, and the excluded driver could face other consequences if they operate your vehicle. The excluded driver could face penalties for driving without insurance, which can include:

• Fines

• Suspension of their driver’s license

• Jail time

• Having your car impounded (depending on your state)

• Increased premiums or inability to renew your policy

Except in certain states, your car insurance company will not extend any coverage to a named excluded driver. This means that any property damage, bodily injury, or personal injury protection coverage is null when the excluded driver is behind the wheel, and you could be on the hook for any and all losses.

If you name an excluded driver, they can’t drive your vehicles or receive auto insurance coverage under your policy — but most excluded drivers can obtain their own auto insurance. In fact, some insurers will require proof of coverage for a driver before they’ll exclude them from a policy.

Once you’ve excluded a driver, the exclusion typically remains in effect as long as the policy is active. That means they’ll still be excluded when you renew your policy.

To add the excluded driver back onto your policy, you’ll need permission from the insurance company. If the carrier agrees to the request, you’ll likely see your premiums go up unless the person is no longer considered a high-risk driver.

It’s possible to sue an excluded driver for things like medical expenses, pain and suffering, and property damage if they’re responsible for an auto accident, but collecting on a judgment could prove difficult if the driver has limited assets. You may also be able to sue the policyholder over injuries or damages the excluded driver caused while operating their vehicle.

One thing to note: If you’re injured by an excluded driver and you have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, your policy may help pay for damages. Be sure to speak with an attorney about your options for compensation and any legal advice you might need.

You’ll need to contact your insurance company if you want to remove an excluded driver. You may want to add them as a covered driver if they improve their bad driving record, for example. Or to take them off your policy altogether, perhaps because they moved out of your home.

In any case, bear in mind that your car insurance rates could be affected.