When a server delivers a to-go order in their own car and something goes wrong, the honest answer to who pays is often nobody you expected. The server’s personal auto policy may exclude the business trip, your general liability does not cover autos at all, and a delivery app’s coverage may not reach your restaurant. Hired and non-owned auto is the coverage built to close that gap, and many restaurants that need it do not carry it.
The personal auto business-use problem
Personal auto policies are priced and written for personal driving. Most contain language that limits or excludes using the vehicle to carry people or property for a fee, and delivering food during a shift can fall on the wrong side of that line. The driver usually does not know this. They assume their own insurance follows them everywhere. When a claim happens during a paid delivery, the personal carrier can question the trip, and coverage that seemed automatic becomes a dispute. The exposure does not disappear because the driver’s policy stepped back. It lands on whoever the injured party sues, and that is frequently the restaurant that sent the driver.
Why general liability does not help
Owners often assume the business’s general liability policy is a catch-all. It is not, and it specifically is not for autos. General liability generally excludes bodily injury and property damage arising from the use of an auto. That exclusion exists because auto exposure is meant to be insured under auto coverage, not liability coverage. So when a delivery accident happens, the general liability policy is the wrong door to knock on. The coverage that responds to vehicles your business does not own is hired and non-owned auto, and it is a separate thing you either bought or did not.
What hired and non-owned auto actually does
Hired and non-owned auto liability covers your restaurant’s exposure for vehicles it uses but does not own. The non-owned piece is the one that matters here: it responds to the business’s liability when an employee uses their personal car for your business, including running a delivery. It does not repair the employee’s car and it does not replace their own coverage. It protects the restaurant from the claim that arises because you sent someone driving on your behalf. It is usually inexpensive relative to the size of a serious auto injury claim, which is a large part of why it is worth carrying even for occasional delivery.
The third-party app gray zone
Many owners think using DoorDash, Uber Eats, or a similar platform moves the risk off the restaurant entirely. Sometimes it helps, but it is not a clean handoff. These platforms carry coverage for their own drivers, and the terms, triggers, and whether anything extends to the restaurant vary by platform and situation. A driver who is between the app and their personal policy can sit in a coverage gap, and a restaurant that assumed the app covered everything can find itself named anyway. The practical rule is to confirm what applies to your operation rather than assume the app has erased your exposure.
The claim scenario, walked through
Picture a rush. A server offers to run a nearby order out the door, takes their own car, and causes an at-fault accident with injuries. The server’s personal carrier looks at a paid business delivery and questions coverage. The restaurant’s general liability excludes autos, so it does not respond. If there is no hired and non-owned auto in place, the restaurant is defending a serious claim with no policy built for it. If the coverage is in place, there is a policy designed for exactly this moment. Same accident, very different outcome, and the only variable is a coverage most owners can add cheaply.
Questions to ask your advisor
- Do we carry hired and non-owned auto, and what does it cover?
- Do any employees ever use their own cars for deliveries, deposits, or supply runs?
- Does our general liability exclude auto liability, as most do?
- If we use delivery apps, what coverage actually reaches the restaurant?
- Should we set expectations with staff about driving for the business?
- What limit makes sense given how a serious auto injury claim can run?
The trip feels small, a quick delivery during a busy night. The exposure is not small. The fix usually is.
Want guidance first? Compare your coverage. Already know what you need? Get a quote.