[George from New England]

Comment at web link ....
“I’m also curious on something mentioned in the article, that the owner of the BMW commited “insurance fraud” by not reporting a third driver to their insurance company? I found this strange. So I can’t let a friend borrow my car without commiting insurance fraud?”

I regular swap vehicles with other family members. I make sure we all carry the auto insurance and its paid up. In Florida there better not be a law against this that can be used against me.

[Vaquero]

I carry uninsured driver insurance.

[liberalh8ter]

As far as I know, as long as the family member does not live with you, you don't need to list the driver on your policy. At least, that's the way it was about 10 years ago.

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

I had a conversation about letting others use your car with my insurance agent. Generally, it is not a problem, but the owner and the insurance company will be liable if the person he lends the car gets into an accident like this one. The liability attachs to the insurance company to protect innocent third parties in cases like this. The issue of criminal fraud only arises if you use you name and driving record to insure a car for a third party who might otherwise have to pay much higher rates. A lot of people in New York do not own cars. I can see a case where a relative or friend with a terrible driving record prevails upon them to register or lease a car which the bad driver uses almost exclusively.

Then when you nitwit nephew plows “his” BMW with your name on the registration into a Grand Caravan and wipes out a family of seven, and gets up and runs off, the cops come looking for you. You sez, “Oh, that’s not may car, I just registered it for my nephew.” Then they arrest you for insurance fraud, and put out an APB for your nephew.