There are various auto insurance coverages, with some legally mandated and others optional.
GEICO provides many different car insurance policies to meet the needs and budget of their customers. Continue reading to familiarize yourself with common coverage types, along with what each one covers – this will allow you to select the policy best suited to your situation.
Bodily Injury Liability
Bodily injury liability insurance is one of the most important coverages you can invest in, providing legal protection in case of being sued for damages and covering medical expenses, pain and suffering claims and lost wages.
Funeral costs could also be covered if someone dies due to an accident you caused.
Each state mandates minimum levels of bodily injury and property damage liability coverage; however, you may wish to increase this limit to help safeguard your assets should an accident be particularly devastating.
Bodily injury coverage limits are expressed using three numbers, such as 25/50/25. This indicates how much your insurance company is willing to cover in terms of injuries to people in your car and property damage caused by you in an at-fault collision.
Property Damage Liability
Property damage liability coverage is required of drivers by law and covers any damage you cause to another’s car, building or other property in an accident.
In most instances, this insurance will cover repairs or replacement of other people’s cars or buildings damaged in an accident, and also covers debris removal following such incidents.
Property damage liability coverage is an integral component of general liability insurance that can protect drivers against financial responsibility for other drivers’ expenses in an auto accident, medical bills and legal fees if sued and legal representation fees should the incident take place.
Comprehensive Coverage
Comprehensive car coverage protects against damage from non-collision incidents such as fires, theft, vandalism or storms that don’t involve collision. It also pays to replace your vehicle if it is stolen.
Supplementary insurance policies provide drivers with an option to add comprehensive and collision coverage as part of their existing portfolios. While not legally mandated in most states, purchasing comprehensive and collision policies is often worthwhile for many drivers.
Coverage like this reimburses for repair or replacement costs up to the ACV (actual cash value), less your deductible amount. It’s especially worth considering if your vehicle is expensive, or if severe weather events are prevalent where you live.
Collision Coverage
Collision coverage offers compensation for damage sustained in an accident, from minor scratches and dings to total vehicle losses (such as being stolen or vandalized). It covers everything from minor dents and scrapes up to major car wreckage that renders your vehicle totaled (e.g. stolen vehicles or vandalism).
As soon as you start an auto policy, you have the ability to select a deductible amount for collision coverage. A higher deductible can help lower premiums while selecting one with low coverage could increase them significantly.
However, if your vehicle is of lesser value or you can’t afford repairs after an accident, dropping collision coverage on your auto policy could save money by cutting costs. Though not mandatory by law, dropping collision insurance could help bring down insurance premiums significantly.
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage
Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage provides financial compensation if another driver causes injuries to you or your passengers during an accident, with some states mandating this coverage by law.
In other states, registration of businesses is optional.
Medical payments (UM) coverage provides essential protection if an at-fault driver doesn’t carry enough coverage or the damages are greater than expected. Furthermore, this coverage protects you in cases of hit-and-run incidents wherein an individual flees the scene without providing contact details; you could become vulnerable if they disappear before police arrive to investigate further.
Dependent upon your state’s laws, Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage may come in two varieties: bodily injury and property damage. Some UM policies combine both of these categories while others may set separate limits.
