Auto Insurance: What’s Covered and What’s Not
When one signs up for auto insurance, many people mistakenly believe that in the event of an accident, the insurance company will take care of everything, and when we say everything, we mean absolutely everything. We’re sad to burst your bubble, but that’s really not the case. What your insurance company covers is highly dependent on the kind of policy that you get from them. So, supposing that you just signed up for the most basic insurance policy, do you know what you’re getting? Here’s the most basic list!
1. Body Injury Liability- this applies to injuries that the designated driver may cause on to another driver. The good thing about this is that yourself, as well as your family members, can take advantage of this benefit, in the event that the family member drove your car with your permission. Body liability is important because when you injure another person in an accident, he or she may sue you for huge sums of money. You may even consider buying more in order to protect your savings or your home in the long run.
2. Medical Payments or Personal Injury Protection- If you or other family members inside the car at the time of the accident sustain injuries, this coverage can take care of your medical bills. In fact, personal injury protection can cover lost wages, cost of replacing services, and even funeral expenses, in the event of a fatality.
3. Property Damage Liability- In case you damage somebody else’s property because of a driving accident, then this can cover the expenses that will cost to repair it. This isn’t exclusive to damage another person’s car, but also things like fences, lamp posts, buildings, homes, or other structures that your vehicle may have hit.
4. Collision- In case your car is damaged because of a collision with another car, object or it flips over, then collision will take care of it. Damage caused by potholes is also covered. Collision coverage generally is sold with about $250 to $1000 deductible. The higher one’s deductible rate is, the lower the premium. The nice thing about collision coverage is that even if you are found at fault for the car accident, the collision coverage will still shoulder your car repair costs.
5. Comprehensive- this covers you if your car is stolen or there is damage to it that is not caused by a car accident or another car. Examples are explosions, fire, flood, hail, vandalism or animals.
6. Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage- In the unfortunate event that you or a member of your family is injured by a hit and run accident, or the other driver will not have enough insurance coverage or money that will cover the expenses, then this will take care of it.
This is what you can more or less expect from a very basic insurance policy. Of course, there may be additions and omissions, so be sure to ask you insurance provider about the details.
Sam Briones is a writer who covers an array of topics from finding cheap auto insurance to safety tips.
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