Private passenger motor vehicle insurance coverage: personal vehicle sharing.

Existing law prohibits an insured motor vehicle from being classified as a common carrier, livery, or for-hire vehicle solely for the reason that the named insured is performing volunteer services for a nonprofit charitable organization or governmental agency consisting of providing social service transportation, as defined. This bill would prohibit a private passenger motor vehicle, as defined, from being classified for insurance purposes as a commercial, for-hire, or permissive use vehicle, or livery solely on the basis of it being used for personal vehicle sharing, as defined, if the annual revenue received by the vehicle's owner that is generated by personal vehicle sharing does not exceed the annual expenses of owning and operating the vehicle, including, but not limited to, depreciation, interest, lease payments, automobile loan payments, insurance, maintenance, parking, and fuel, and the personal vehicle sharing is conducted pursuant to a personal vehicle sharing program. The bill would define a personal vehicle sharing program as a legal entity qualified to do business in the state that facilitates personal vehicle sharing, as specified. The bill would require a personal vehicle sharing program, among other things, during all times that the vehicle is engaged in personal vehicle sharing, to provide insurance coverage, as specified, and collect, maintain, and make available to the vehicle owner and the vehicle owner's primary automobile liability insurer verifiable electronic records identifying the date, time, initial and final locations of the vehicle, and miles driven when it is being used as part of the personal vehicle sharing program. The bill would limit the circumstances under which the vehicle owner's automobile liability insurance can be subject to liability, and require that automobile insurance policies not be canceled, voided, terminated, rescinded, or nonrenewed solely on the basis that the private passenger motor vehicle has been made available for personal vehicle sharing. The bill would authorize the insurer of the vehicle to exclude any and all coverage afforded under the vehicle owner's automobile insurance policy while the vehicle is used by a person other than the owner as part of a personal vehicle sharing program, and would provide the primary and excess insurers of owners, operators, and maintainers of the vehicle with the right to inform the insured that it has no duty to defend or indemnify any person or organization for liability for any loss that occurs during use of the vehicle in a personal vehicle sharing program.