Ep. 477 Non-Owned Auto Can Be A Janitorial Company’s Hidden Nightmare

Rancho Mesa's Alyssa Burley and Jeremy Hoolihan, Partner and Account Executive of the Janitorial Group, discuss the dangers of non-owned auto liability.

Show Notes: ⁠⁠Subscribe to Rancho Mesa's Newsletter⁠⁠.

Director/Producer: ⁠⁠Alyssa Burley⁠⁠

Host: ⁠⁠Alyssa Burley⁠⁠

Guest: ⁠⁠Jeremy Hoolihan⁠⁠

Editor: Jadyn Brandt

Music: "Home" by JHS Pedals, “News Room News” by Spence

© Copyright 2025. Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc. All rights reserved.

transcript

Alyssa Burley: You’re listening to Rancho Mesa’s StudioOne™ podcast, where each week we break down complex insurance and safety topics to help your business thrive.

I’m your host, Alyssa Burley, and today I’m joined by Jeremy Hoolihan, Partner with Rancho Mesa. He specializes in insuring janitorial and maintenance companies. And, we’re going to talk about non-owned auto liability. Jeremy, welcome to the show.

Jeremy Hoolihan: Hi Alyssa, it’s great to be here.

AB: We’re happy you’re here. Now, we have clients in the construction, janitorial/maintenance, landscape and human services industries. And, many of these organizations have company-owned vehicles. So, how common is it that they would have a non-owned auto risk?

JH: Good question Alyssa. It’s very common in the janitorial industry, but also as well as, you know, construction. And it’s really when employees are driving their own vehicles, whether that’s to jobsites, transporting cleaning materials, or simply running errands using their vehicle on company time.

AB: Alright. And do you find that these companies are aware of this type of auto exposure?

JH: Unfortunately, I strongly fell that it’s overlooked. Many companies focus on fleet safety when it comes to their own company vehicles, but they really don't focus on the exposure that they truly have with their employees' own vehicles. And non-owned auto liability arises when a business is held responsible for accidents that are caused by their employees driving their personal vehicles while performing duties in the course of employment. Essentially, it’s the commercial auto policy for the employer is secondary insurance to the employee's own personal insurances.

And in addition, as inflation and nuclear verdicts drive up costs of individual auto liability claims, employers must be concerned not only with company-owned vehicles, but the employees’ vehicles being used on company time. If an employee causes an accident while driving their personal vehicle while on the clock, the injured parties may file claims against both the employee’s personal auto insurance and their employer.

AB: Okay so, both the employee and the employer need to understand there is liability. So what do you recommend business owners do to protect their company from non-owned auto liability?

JH: Well I have several recommendations, but I think the first thing to take into consideration is really for the employer to take the mindset that the non-owned auto exposure is similar to their company vehicle exposure. So, one Something that I would recommend employees using their personal vehicles is to provide a copy of their Motor Vehicle Report. It’s critical that the employee’s Motor Vehicle Report meets the same parameters as those driving company-owned vehicles.

I think historically employers have been focused on just verifying a good driving record for those employees driving company vehicles, but they should also take it a step further and require that employees driving their own vehicles on company time provide those motor vehicle reports. I would also recommend that not only employees driving personal vehicles but company vehicles participate in the DMV Pull Program. That way, if an employee received a major moving violation like reckless driving or a DUI, the company will be alerted.

In addition, I would say companies should also require all company drivers who drive non-owned vehicles to purchase personal liability coverage. really above the minimum requirements. Just recently, January 1st of this year, the minimum insurance requirements for California were finally raised. Previously, they were $15,000 and $30,000. So $15,000 of liability for one person, $30,000 for the accident. I mean, that doesn't cover a bumper. So they finally raised it, but it's now it's only $30,000 and $60,000. So, you know, my recommendation honestly would be to require any employee driving their own vehicle to have minimum limits of at least $300,000.

And also, I’d make sure that the employees complete routine maintenance based on their car's manufacturer's specs. And that includes things like oil changes, tire checks, windshield wiper replacements. This is just as critical as a maintenance program for company-owned vehicles.

In addition, employers should provide regular fleet safety training to all employees driving company vehicles as well as personal vehicles. So making sure that those people are involved in those fleet safety meetings.

And finally, I think business owners may want to encourage employees to use safety features such as apps that can prevent the driver from using their phone while the vehicle is in motion.

AB: Yeah. All of those are really good recommendations and I know that we here have talked about how we can implement some of those apps on employees' phones. So, Rancho Mesa has multiple driver training courses through our SafetyOne™ Platform where drivers can be trained on a regular basis. So our clients should be taking advantage of those training courses. They are available to them.

JH: Absolutely.

AB: So, any final words for your clients about their non-owned auto exposure?

JH: Sure, janitorial businesses, in general, have a large non-owned auto exposure that can often be overlooked and leave a business vulnerable to high dollar auto claims, which can result in not only non-renewals but increased premiums in the future.

So really now is the time to review your current program’s policies and procedures with your insurance broker and make any adjustments necessary.

AB: Alright well, Jeremy, if listeners have questions about their non-owned auto exposure, what’s the best way to get in touch with you?

JM: The best way to reach me is via email of phone. My email is jhoolihan@ranchomesa.com, and my direct line is (619) 937-0174.

AB: Alright well, Jeremy, thank you for joining me in StudioOne.

JM: Yeah thanks for having me Alyssa, it’s been great.

AB: Thanks for tuning in to our latest episode produced by StudioOne™. If you enjoyed what you heard, please share this episode and subscribe. For more insights like this, visit us at RanchoMesa.com and subscribe to our weekly newsletter.