Glossary

Commute use

A vehicle-use rating for a car driven to and from work or school, typically priced between pleasure use and business use.

Also called: commuting use, work commute rating, commute mileage

Commute use is how an insurer classifies a car that is regularly driven to a job, school or transit station. It is one of three common use classes on a personal policy: pleasure use for errands and recreation, commute use, and business use for driving that is part of your work.

Insurers usually ask whether the car is used to commute and how far it travels one way, along with total annual mileage. Commuting tends to put a car on busy roads at rush hour, when crashes are more frequent, so a commute rating usually costs more than pleasure use, and at many insurers a long daily commute costs more than a short one. Driving to a single regular workplace generally counts as commuting, not business use.

Classifications should match reality. If you start working from home, retire or switch to public transit, tell your insurer; moving to pleasure use or lower mileage may cut your premium. Understating your commute to get a lower price is misrepresentation, and it can lead to a premium adjustment or, in serious cases, trouble with a claim. Review your vehicle use each time your policy renews, especially after a job change or a move.

Last reviewed October 4, 2026

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Related terms

Pleasure use A vehicle-use rating class for cars driven for errands and recreation, not for a regular commute to work or school or for business. Business use A personal policy rating for a car driven as part of your job, such as visiting clients or job sites, which costs more than commute or pleasure use. Annual mileage How many miles a car is driven in a year, a rating factor because more time on the road means more chances of a claim. Rating factors The characteristics insurers use to price a policy, such as driving record, location, vehicle, mileage and, where allowed, age and credit. Garaging address The address where a car is mainly parked overnight, which insurers use to price a policy and which must be reported accurately.

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