As adults, we are always willing to lend a hand and graciously share with our friends, family and neighbors. We begin stressing the importance of sharing with our children when they are mere toddlers. While sharing is generally a nice gesture, lending your car to someone else can lead to tremendous repercussions if the car is in an accident.

This advice is especially important for young adults who are covered under their parents’ insurance. College students are more apt to loan their cars to their friends who may not have a vehicle on campus. It’s important to note that auto insurance is on the vehicle and follows the car, not the person. If someone else is driving the car and gets into a crash or causes damage to the vehicle, your insurance is responsible for covering the cost of damages to the car. As a result, you insurance premium may go up.

Insurance companies underwrite the driving habits of the insured, not the driving habits of those you lend your car to and look unfavorably on incidents that happen while your car was in the possession of someone else. This behavior could not just affect your insurance rates, but also your insurability with that carrier.

While sharing in most other cases is a gracious gesture, in the case of loaning your car to a friend, it’s best to refrain and save you both the hassle and hard feelings in the event of a crash.