My employees use their own cars for work. Is that covered by my general liability policy?

No. The general liability form contains an auto exclusion. Liability arising from an employee driving a personal vehicle on company business is addressed by hired and non-owned auto liability, either added to another policy by endorsement or written within a commercial auto policy.

Does this pay to repair the employee's car?

No. Hired and non-owned auto is liability coverage, meaning it responds to injury and damage the driver causes to others. Damage to the employee's own vehicle falls to their personal auto policy. This is one of the most common misunderstandings about the coverage, and it comes up after almost every claim.

We only rent a van a few times a year. Is that enough exposure to matter?

Yes. A single rental accident can produce a liability claim well beyond what is handled at the rental counter, and the business is a natural defendant. Hired auto liability exists precisely for occasional rentals. Note that damage to the rented vehicle itself is addressed by a separate physical damage grant.

What changes if the business buys a vehicle?

Hired and non-owned is no longer the right form. Vehicles titled to the business belong on a commercial auto policy with owned-auto coverage symbols, physical damage coverage and scheduled units. Tell your agent before the vehicle is put into service rather than waiting for the renewal.

Part of our guides to commercial insurance and nonprofit insurance.

Coverage

Hired & Non-Owned Auto Liability Insurance in Missouri

Protects your organization when staff or volunteers drive their own or rented vehicles for you.

Start my review Read the guide

Covers your organization's liability when someone drives a personal or rented vehicle on your behalf.

What It Covers

•Accidents while a volunteer drives their own car on organization business
•Accidents in vehicles your organization rents or borrows
•Injuries to other people caused by that driver
•Damage to other people's property in the accident
•Legal defense costs against your organization
•Liability that exceeds the driver's personal auto limits

Example Scenarios

•A volunteer delivering meals rear-ends another car and their personal limits run out
•A staff member driving a rented van to a conference causes a multi-car accident
•A board member driving to a donor meeting injures a pedestrian

Who Needs It

•Any nonprofit whose volunteers drive for programs or deliveries
•Organizations that rent vans or buses for events and trips
•Meals delivery, transportation, and outreach programs
•Nonprofits reimbursing staff mileage for organization business

What It Pays For

✓Injury and property damage claims against your organization
✓Legal defense and settlement costs
✓Amounts above the driver's own auto policy
✓Court judgments naming the organization

What's Not Covered

✕Damage to the volunteer's own vehicle
✕Vehicles titled to the organization (those need Commercial Auto)
✕Injuries to the driver themselves
✕Accidents while the vehicle is used for personal errands
✕Drivers operating without a valid license

Why It Matters

When a volunteer crashes while working for you, their personal auto policy pays first — and your organization is usually named in the lawsuit once those limits run out. This is one of the most overlooked gaps in nonprofit insurance, because the vehicles never appear on your books.

Typical Coverage Limits

Commonly matches your General Liability limit

Typical Cost Range

Usually a modest add-on — ask for a quote

Availability, eligibility, limits, exclusions, conditions and coverage terms vary by insurer, policy form, endorsement, jurisdiction and individual risk. This is general information, not insurance, legal or tax advice.

Underwriting and cost considerations

Hired and non-owned auto liability covers a business's liability for bodily injury and property damage arising out of vehicles it rents, hires or borrows, and out of employees' personal vehicles driven on company business.

What underwriters evaluate

Whether any vehicles are titled to the business, since owned units move the risk to a full commercial auto policy
How many employees drive personal vehicles for work, and how frequently they do it
What the driving is for, since errands and client visits rate differently than delivery or transporting people
Whether motor vehicle records are pulled on employees who drive, and how often they are refreshed
Whether the company verifies that employee drivers carry personal auto liability, and at what limits
Frequency and type of vehicles hired, including trucks and vans rented for moves, jobs or events
Any delivery or courier activity, which most markets treat as a separate and more hazardous exposure
A written driver policy covering authorized use, distracted driving and personal-vehicle standards

What affects the premium

Number of employees who drive on company business, or total payroll, depending on the rating approach
The nature of the driving exposure, especially any delivery or transport of people or goods
Cost of hire for rented and leased vehicles
Limit selected, and whether the coverage is intended to support an umbrella above it
Auto loss history
Driver screening standards and motor vehicle record practices

Common claim types

At-fault accidents caused by an employee running an errand in a personal vehicle
Accidents in a rented truck or van used for a move, an event or a job site
Claims that exhaust the employee's personal auto limits and then reach the employer
Vicarious liability claims naming the business for the acts of an employee driver
Accidents during a personal detour that the plaintiff argues was still in the course of employment

Common gaps and misunderstandings

This is liability coverage only; it does not pay for damage to the employee's own vehicle
Physical damage to a rented vehicle usually requires hired auto physical damage, which is a separate grant
Coverage generally does not apply to vehicles owned by or registered to the business
Personal auto policies can restrict business use, leaving less underlying coverage than the employer assumes
Delivery and courier operations are frequently excluded and need a purpose-written commercial auto program

Commonly purchased alongside

General Liability
Business Owners Policy (BOP)
Umbrella / Excess Liability
Workers' Compensation
Commercial Property

Frequently asked questions

My employees use their own cars for work. Is that covered by my general liability policy?: No. The general liability form contains an auto exclusion. Liability arising from an employee driving a personal vehicle on company business is addressed by hired and non-owned auto liability, either added to another policy by endorsement or written within a commercial auto policy.
Does this pay to repair the employee's car?: No. Hired and non-owned auto is liability coverage, meaning it responds to injury and damage the driver causes to others. Damage to the employee's own vehicle falls to their personal auto policy. This is one of the most common misunderstandings about the coverage, and it comes up after almost every claim.
We only rent a van a few times a year. Is that enough exposure to matter?: Yes. A single rental accident can produce a liability claim well beyond what is handled at the rental counter, and the business is a natural defendant. Hired auto liability exists precisely for occasional rentals. Note that damage to the rented vehicle itself is addressed by a separate physical damage grant.
What changes if the business buys a vehicle?: Hired and non-owned is no longer the right form. Vehicles titled to the business belong on a commercial auto policy with owned-auto coverage symbols, physical damage coverage and scheduled units. Tell your agent before the vehicle is put into service rather than waiting for the renewal.

Coverage, exclusions and limits vary by carrier and policy form. Review the applicable policy language, and confirm requirements for your state and operations.

Home Health Agency Insurance: Caregiver Auto Liability
Most home health agencies carry general liability and workers' comp but leave one of the most commonly overlooked exposures—caregiver auto liability—sitting in a footnote.
Trucking Insurance: FMCSA Requirements & Costs
A broker's plain-English guide to commercial truck insurance — the core coverages, the FMCSA liability minimums and the MCS-90, what underwriters review, and what drives your premium.
Trucking & Transportation Insurance Requirements in Missouri
Missouri trucking companies face two separate regulatory frameworks depending on whether they operate across state lines or remain within Missouri borders.
Personal Services Insurance Requirements in Missouri
Personal service businesses in Missouri—salons, repair shops, home-care agencies, consultants—carry a stack of insurance obligations, from state-mandated auto liability to workers' compensation and professional coverage. What the law requires, what your clients and leases require, and how the pieces fit.
Nonprofit Workers' Comp: Employees vs. Volunteers
Who counts as an employee, how volunteers are usually treated, classification traps, and what drives a premium audit. Rules vary by state.
Salon, Spa & Studio Insurance: The Deciding Exclusion
The general liability policy most salon and spa owners buy does not cover the thing most likely to generate a claim: injury arising out of the service itself. That carve-out, plus whether the person holding the tools is an employee or a booth renter, decides the whole program.

Start an application for Hired & Non-Owned Auto Liability