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At King Price Insurance we always have your best interests at heart. And one of the most important, yet often misunderstood, parts of your car insurance policy is a small phrase with big consequences: regular driver. Getting this right from day one protects your cover and makes sure there are no nasty surprises when you need to claim.
Key Takeaways
- The regular driver is whoever drives the car most often in any monthly period, this may not be the policy owner.
- A nominated driver is anyone else who has permission to drive the car occasionally.
- Your monthly premium is calculated based on the regular driver's risk profile, not the policy owner's.
- Listing the wrong regular driver is considered a material misrepresentation and can result in a rejected claim.
- You can update your regular driver or add nominated drivers at any time through the King Price Self-Service Portal.
What does “regular driver” mean in car insurance?
In the motor vehicle insurance space, the term regular driver simply means the person who drives your car the most during any given monthly period. It does not have to be the person who owns the car or who took out the policy, it just has to be whoever is behind the wheel most often.
- Regular driver
- The person who drives a specific insured vehicle most frequently during any monthly period. The regular driver’s risk profile, including age, gender, and driving history, determines the premium charged for that vehicle.
A closely related term you will also see on your policy schedule is nominated driver. This refers to anyone else who has your permission to drive the car from time to time, but who is not the primary user.
- Nominated driver
- A person who has the policyholder’s permission to drive the insured vehicle occasionally but who is not the regular (most frequent) driver. Nominated drivers must be listed on the policy schedule.
Regular driver vs nominated driver: what’s the difference?
The distinction is straightforward. The regular driver uses the car most of the time. The nominated driver uses it sometimes. Both need to appear on your policy schedule, but only the regular driver’s profile shapes your premium.
| Regular driver | Nominated driver | |
|---|---|---|
| Who they are | The person who drives the car most often | Anyone else with permission to drive occasionally |
| Effect on premium | Yes, premium is based on their risk profile | No direct effect on base premium |
| Must appear on policy schedule | Yes, mandatory | Yes, strongly recommended |
| What happens if not listed correctly | Claim can be rejected | Claim may be affected if they were driving at the time of the incident |
Why your premium is based on the regular driver’s risk profile
Insurance premiums are not arbitrary. Every rand you pay is calculated using actuarial data, real-world statistics about who is most likely to be involved in an accident, make a claim, or cause damage. The regular driver’s age, gender, driving history, and other factors all feed into this calculation.
This is why, for example, a 55-year-old woman with a clean driving record will typically pay less for comprehensive car insurance than a 22-year-old man. The statistics reflect real differences in claim frequency and severity. The insurer prices accordingly, and that pricing only holds if the person listed as the regular driver is actually the one driving the car most of the time.
According to claim statistics, younger male drivers are statistically more likely to be involved in accidents than older female drivers, which directly affects the premium calculated for their risk profile.
A practical example
Imagine a 55-year-old woman takes out comprehensive car insurance. Her premium is calculated based on her low-risk profile. But her 22-year-old son drives the car most of the time. If she does not update the regular driver on her policy, she is paying a premium that does not reflect the actual risk, and King Price is pricing cover for a driver who is not really behind the wheel.
If her son is then involved in an accident, King Price can reject the claim. Not out of spite, but because the policy was set up on incorrect information. This is called a material misrepresentation, and it voids cover.
- Material misrepresentation
- Providing incorrect or incomplete information that would have affected an insurer’s decision to offer cover or the premium charged. A material misrepresentation can result in a claim being rejected or a policy being cancelled.
If the person listed as the regular driver is not actually the most frequent driver of the vehicle, the insurer may reject a claim on the grounds of material misrepresentation.
What happens if your regular driver changes?
Life changes. Your child gets their licence and starts using the family car. You buy a second vehicle. You move in with a partner who now drives your car to work every day. Whenever the person who drives your car most often changes, you need to update your policy schedule.
The good news is that updating your regular driver at King Price is simple. You can do it online through the Self-Service Portal, or call us directly on 0860 50 50 50.
How to update the regular driver on your King Price policy
Follow these steps to update or add a driver to your car insurance policy through the King Price Self-Service Portal.
- Tools:
- King Price Self-Service Portal account
- Driver's licence details for the new regular driver
Log in to the Self-Service Portal
Go to ssp.kingprice.co.za and log in with your King Price credentials.
Select your vehicle policy
Choose the car insurance policy for the vehicle whose regular driver you need to update.
Navigate to driver details
Click on 'Policy details' and then 'Driver information' to view the current regular and nominated drivers.
Update the regular driver
Enter the new regular driver's details, including their full name, date of birth, licence issue date, and licence code.
Save and confirm
Review the updated details and save. Your premium will be recalculated to reflect the new regular driver's risk profile. You will receive a new policy schedule by email.
The right information protects your cover
The bottom line is simple: incorrect details lead to incorrect cover. When you take out a King Price car insurance policy, make sure you tell us who actually drives your car the most. If other people drive it sometimes, list them as nominated drivers too. This small step ensures that when something goes wrong, and you need to claim, everything is in order and your claim goes through without a hitch.
Transparency between a policyholder and their insurer is the foundation of a valid insurance contract. The moment the risk profile on the policy no longer reflects reality, whether through a change in regular driver, address, or vehicle use, the cover provided may no longer be valid. Always notify your insurer of material changes as soon as they happen.
Policyholders must notify King Price of any material change in circumstances, including a change in regular driver, within 30 days of the change occurring.
King Price Claims Data: Regular Driver Misrepresentation
A significant proportion of rejected car insurance claims in South Africa involve a mismatch between the listed regular driver and the actual driver at the time of the incident, highlighting the importance of keeping driver details up to date.
Last reviewed:
The regular driver is the person who drives the insured vehicle most often during any monthly period. This does not have to be the policy owner, it just has to be whoever uses the car the most. If that changes, you need to update your policy schedule.
A nominated driver is someone who has the policyholder’s permission to drive the car occasionally but who is not the most frequent driver. Nominated drivers should be listed on your policy schedule so that they are covered when they drive your car.
Listing the wrong regular driver is a material misrepresentation. If a claim arises and King Price establishes that the actual driver at the time was not the listed regular driver, and that person drives the car most of the time, the claim can be rejected. Always make sure the person who drives the car most is listed as the regular driver.
Yes. You can list multiple nominated drivers on your King Price car insurance policy. Anyone who drives your car occasionally should be listed as a nominated driver on your policy schedule to ensure they are covered.
It may. Premiums are calculated based on the regular driver’s risk profile. Younger drivers, particularly young males, are statistically more likely to be involved in accidents, so their risk profile typically results in a higher premium. However, listing the correct regular driver is essential regardless of the cost, because an incorrect listing can result in rejected claims.
You can update your regular driver through the King Price Self-Service Portal at ssp.kingprice.co.za, or by calling us on 0860 50 50 50. You will need the new regular driver’s full name, date of birth, licence issue date, and licence code. Your premium will be recalculated once the update is saved.
No, the policy owner and the regular driver do not have to be the same person. What matters is that the person listed as the regular driver is genuinely the person who drives the car most often. The premium is calculated on the regular driver’s profile, not the policy owner’s.
Update history (1)
- Updated article structure, added TL;DR answer box, key takeaways, glossary terms, comparison table, how-to steps, citations, stat callouts, expert quote, research data, and Yoast FAQ. Refreshed all CTAs to use canonical King Price conversion URLs. Optimised for SEO, AEO, GEO, and AIO.
