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Texas insurance glossary

Rider

A rider is an amendment attached to a policy that changes what it covers, which in Texas auto insurance is more often called an endorsement.

Sources checked

The two words describe one mechanism — a written amendment that adds coverage, removes it, or changes a term — and the difference is habit rather than substance. Texas auto and property policies almost always say endorsement; life and health policies say rider.

Whichever word is on it, the test is the same: it is part of the contract, it should be listed on the declarations page, and if it is not listed it is worth asking why before assuming it is in force.

A rider can also be the thing that removes an exclusion, which is the most valuable and least visible job it does.

Sources: TDI — home insurance glossary; TDI — consumer bill of rights for personal automobile insurance (CB005). Verified .

A definition, not legal advice and not a quote. Rules and figures change; confirm your own situation against the source named above, or with us, before you act on it. Last checked .

See also

  • Endorsement An endorsement is a document that changes a policy — adding, removing, restricting or clarifying coverage — and becomes part of the contract once it is issued.
  • Declarations page The declarations page is the summary at the front of a policy naming the insured, the vehicles or property, the coverages, the limits, the deductibles and the term.
  • Exclusion An exclusion is a clause naming something the policy does not cover, and it operates by carving that thing back out of coverage the policy has already granted.
  • Policy limits Policy limits are the most an insurer will pay under a given coverage, stated per person, per occurrence, or per policy period on the declarations page.

Where this is handled

Knowing what a coverage is called is not the same as knowing what is on your policy. One independent agency can read your declarations page with you and compare the markets that will write your record.

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