The Basics Of Auto Insurance Coverage

Getting auto insurance for the very first time? While the process of getting car insurance might seem simple, you'll likely be confused about all the different coverage you can get for your vehicle. In order to avoid the confusion of navigating insurance coverage, it helps to know the basics so you know what kind of coverage you need.

Liability

The main type of insurance that you need to have is liability coverage. Liability coverage will cover your expenses for accidents where you are the driver that is at fault. However, there are two types of liability coverage that you can get. There is coverage for any expenses related to people that are injured in the accident, and coverage for any damage caused to personal property. The personal property coverage includes other vehicles that you hit, a person's lawn that you drive onto, and even a person's house in an extreme accident where you go off the road.

Medical Payments

While pedestrians and people that you hit in other vehicles are covered with liability coverage, you don't have coverage for yourself or those people in your vehicle. This is where medical payment coverage comes into play. It can cover the injuries of everybody in the car, no matter who caused the accident. It also gives you protection from paying medical payments in hit-and-run accidents where you cannot find the other driver. 

Uninsured Motorist

While most people are required to have auto insurance, you may have an accident with another driver that is not insured. You have a few options to recover from your losses in this situation. You can have the person pay you directly, which will result in a cash payment or a lawsuit. You can also use uninsured motorist coverage to pay for your expenses. 

However, don't confuse uninsured motorist coverage with underinsured motorist coverage. This alternate form of coverage is designed for when the other driver has car insurance, but their limits are not high enough to cover all your expenses. If you have $100,000 in medical bills but the other driver is only insured for $50,000 in damages to you, underinsured motorist coverage will help cover the remainder. 

Collision Coverage

If you cause an accident where damage is caused to your car, you can use collision coverage to make the necessary repairs. This helps ensure that you are not driving around with a damaged car due to an accident that you caused.