Will Insurance Still Cover You if Driving on Expired License

whitfords on 18/11/2024 - 19:21

I just realised that I've been driving with an expired license for a couple of months.

When I logged into DoT Direct, and before I paid to renew it, it said that my license was 'Active' but also showed that it had expired?

After a couple of clicks and a credit card payment it still says 'Active' but it's now showing a future expiry date - so hopefully that's all sorted now, however, my wife and I were speculating about how insurance might have reacted if I was involved in an accident and was driving with an expired license.

Would they still handle things if I was NOT at fault?
Would they still handle things if I was at fault?
Am I automatically considered at fault because of the expired license?

Located in WA if that makes a difference.

Automotive Car Insurance Insurance

Comments

  • EmCKay on 18/11/2024 - 19:31
    +37

    Expired license = unlicensed. Your insurance company wouldn’t touch you.

  • Stuj on 18/11/2024 - 19:40
    +12

    Is this really a question ? What has our education system come to

    • SYLTB on 18/11/2024 - 21:06

      That's why school kids fail math and literacy which have significant linear correlation (p<0,001) in between. When they grow up, come here and posts, comments.

      • ThithLord on 19/11/2024 - 09:53
        +1

        math

        Maths

        • SYLTB on 19/11/2024 - 10:50
          -5

          Any other typos/errors? lol you are pathetic.

          • ThithLord on 19/11/2024 - 11:44

            @SYLTB: Americanisation of the English language is a farce, m8

            • Nugs on 19/11/2024 - 18:51
              +1

              @ThithLord: AmericaniZation :)
              Yep, it shits me no end too
              .

          • DoctorCalculon on 19/11/2024 - 22:25
            +2

            @SYLTB:

            lol you are pathetic.

            People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones!

    • bargaino on 18/11/2024 - 22:13
      +4

      I thought it was a good question, or at least better than average on the internet :-) Do you think our laws are simple, logical and consistent? Are you really that naive?
      One problem, and a common one, they could have answered it with a little googling.

      Technically, OP was not allowed to drive on the "expired" license, but just a payment was needed to make it active again. It would be foolish to equate an overdue fee with a suspended licence, or no license. Would police or courts care? No. Would insurers? Maybe.

      But let me tender exhibit A: https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/thread/9yvm4523

      grovi had his claim honoured, even though he had not paid his license renewal. So Stuj, I think you owe the OP an apolgy. As do a few other armchair lawyers.

      • whitfords on 18/11/2024 - 22:27
        +1

        I actually had read that exact WP post before posting here, so was seeing whether anybody else had experiences as that post was quite old and from QLD.

        • bargaino on 18/11/2024 - 22:28
          +2

          Good luck, you are not off the hook.
          But I take issue with the people who say you asked a stupid question.

          • Stuj on 19/11/2024 - 06:11

            @bargaino: In the eyes of the law I wouldn’t think why something was is an excuse, like im sorry for speeding because I was late for work. It may be taken into account as a ex-gratia consideration but would not be a default position. It was from that perspective I said that. And as you say, yourself you are not off the hook. Im sorry for the school comment although in hindsight.

  • Euphemistic on 18/11/2024 - 19:41
    +3

    Unlicensed would make things a lot harder to get a claim. Not renewing is a technically different to having a suspended licence.

    They MAY assist you if you can prove it was just an oversight to not renew - but youd probably have to be a long term customer with a good history (no claims) and a good driving history. You may be required to pay a stupidly high excess or similar. If youve got no history itll be a lot harder to deal with.

  • oscargamer on 18/11/2024 - 19:44
    +4

    Read your PDS

    • solidussnake on 18/11/2024 - 20:06

      Bonus points if OP actually knows what PDS stands for lol

      • SBOB on 18/11/2024 - 20:16
        +1

        actually knows what PDS stands for lol

        In the OP's case, Peril, Doubt and Stress for now having insurance when unlicenced :)

  • yellowfever on 18/11/2024 - 19:53
    +2

    People are wired differently in WA hey

  • Ocker on 18/11/2024 - 19:55

    To think these type of people are roaming our roads!

    • Euphemistic on 18/11/2024 - 19:57

      Its very easy to overlook something like renewing your icence or rego.

      • MS Paint on 18/11/2024 - 20:20
        +2

        It's actually not if you try just a little.

        • ihfree on 18/11/2024 - 20:28

          Calendar reminders for rego and driver's license expiry are a good idea.

          It does seem to happen a bit more than expected.

          • MS Paint on 18/11/2024 - 20:31
            +1

            @ihfree: There's apps where you can set the date of bills due and get a shit load of reminder notifications in the process. It's actually easier than ever before in history to remember to pay bills.

            It's also easier than ever before to whine about how you forgot.

        • DashCam AKA Rolts on 18/11/2024 - 23:00
          +1

          Payment provides license. Cheers

      • surfingedge on 18/11/2024 - 20:54
        -2

        Technically speaking your "licence to drive" is valid for life, as once you pass your test, your driving ability is never retested unless you commit such severe offences that you get disqualified for a long period (or you are a professional driver and reach a certain age).

        The problem is licences are the default method of ID, so the physical card needs to be renewed to update your photo to maintain validity as ID. But forgetting to update your photo says nothing about your ability to drive.

        In any case your driving record is held on a database by your state government. If you could prove your ID another way, the police could still retrieve your driving record electronically and confirm if you are permitted to drive or not without needing to have a specific "licence".

        In practice the only other ID will be passport, but in the future the police will probably be allowed to use facial recognition…

        • mskeggs on 18/11/2024 - 21:27
          +1

          Not sure where you are getting these ideas from, but I can assure you before photo card drivers licences we had to pay to renew the old paper licences. It is nothing to do with a requirement driven by photo aging.
          You can see this because you can renew for one year or ten (in NSW at least). It is just another source of government revenue.

        • Bruceflix on 19/11/2024 - 07:43

          If you let your license lapse for (I think) 5 years in SA you need to start the testing process again. Not valid for life.

      • whitfords on 18/11/2024 - 21:24

        In my case, it was a combination of moving house, newborn, dads funeral, and being overseas for a few months when renewal came up. DoT website seemed to have some geo block so didn’t attend to it immediately.

  • JimmyF on 18/11/2024 - 20:47
    +1

    Will Insurance Still Cover You if Driving on Expired License

    Driving with an expired license is the same as driving unlicenced in the eyes of the law.

    So nope, not covered

  • ihfree on 18/11/2024 - 20:48
    +2

    Looking at the PDS for GIO:

    You are not covered under any section of this policy for damage, loss, cost or legal liability that is caused by or arises from or involves:

    Unlicensed driving
    your car being driven by, or is in the charge of someone who is not licensed, not correctly licensed
    or not complying with the conditions of their licence but we will pay a claim for you (but not the
    driver or person in charge of your car) if you:

    • were not the driver or person in charge of your car at the time of the incident;
    • did not give encouragement, assistance or express or implied consent to the driving or the
      incident; and
    • can establish that you did not know and could not have reasonably known of any of the above
      circumstances.
    • GordonD on 18/11/2024 - 21:13
      +3

      So if you were driving your own car unlicenced you're not covered.

      But if your wife was driving your car, and she wasn't licenced, and you reasonably didn't know that, and she has an at fault crash, you get your car fixed but she pays for the other car to be fixed.

      Which still leaves the scenario of a not at fault crash where its not going to cost your insured any money, whether its you unlicenced or someone else driving unlicenced, do they turn your back and say nothing to do with them, you're not insured, or at least help you.

      • peteru on 19/11/2024 - 13:39

        Except for the bit that if the wife was a listed driver (almost certainly was), then you includes the wife. No get out of jail card. :-(

        After all, this is insurance. If there is any clause that can lead to not paying out, it will be applied to the fullest possible extent. They employ people to make sure this happens - their sole job is to find any and every reason for not paying out.

  • JIMB0 on 18/11/2024 - 22:04
    +2

    Is it common for the insurance companies to check licences when making a claim?

    • GordonD on 18/11/2024 - 22:11
      +3

      Good point. If they don't ask, and you haven't been booked by the police …

      But you are required to disclose pertinent facts, and if it comes out later that you haven't, its insurance fraud, and you won't get insurance again for a long time from them or anyone else.

  • altomic on 19/11/2024 - 18:05

    Will Insurance Still Cover You if Driving on Expired License

    Simple hack.

    If you drive with a BAC of .3 then you could say you were too drunk to realise that you should not be driving and therefore you're not unlicensed driving because drunk driving trumps that. And you were of unsound mind at the time (i.e. shitfaced)

    Disclaimer: does the above require a disclaimer?

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