If you’re a driver and have a vehicle to use, you might think you’re prepared to get behind the wheel and head to wherever you’d like to go. You still need insurance, though, or else you’re asking for trouble. If the police pull you over and discover you’re driving without insurance, you’ll face penalties.
One thing that you need to comprehend is that different states require different car insurance. If you live in one state, you might have to carry a specific variety, but if you live in a neighboring one, you may not. You must find out what kind of insurance your state requires before you drive.
We’ll take a moment to talk about four popular car insurance varieties.
Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist Coverage
This insurance protects you if a vehicle hits you, and they have no insurance or aren’t carrying enough to cover the damages. It might surprise you how many drivers feel like they can get away with driving around with little insurance or with none whatsoever.
In Texas, about 14% of drivers, on average, don’t carry insurance. That’s problematic if one of them hits you, and you must repair the damage.
Also, you have drivers who have the minimum coverage the law requires. That’s better than nothing but might not get you far if you have a devastating collision with such a driver.
Minimum coverage probably isn’t going to take care of all the vehicle repairs, and all your doctor bills, hospital bills, medication, lost wages, and anything else you need afterward. If you have extensive injuries or drive an expensive vehicle, you might have to reach into your pocket to pay for all that. This insurance protects you from having to do it.
Comprehensive Coverage
Next is comprehensive coverage. This is possibly the most critical insurance that you can have because it kicks in when you damage your vehicle for any reason. It doesn’t matter what happened to the car and whether it was your fault or not.
However, it also protects you if you damage someone else’s vehicle. If you make a driving mistake, and you’re clearly in the wrong, the other driver will insist that you pay for the repairs or a replacement vehicle. This insurance covers that.
It can help you out if there’s some other disaster variety. If someone steals your car and totals it, this insurance will pay to replace it. If someone vandalizes it, you’re covered, and it will cover you if there’s hurricane, fire, or flood damage.
Collision Coverage
Collision coverage is liability coverage if you hit another vehicle or vice versa. This is another fundamental coverage type that most drivers want.
You’ll want this coverage type as a driver because if you hit another car or one hits you, you can quickly file a claim and get a mechanic to repair it. If they declare the vehicle totaled, then you can also use this coverage to get a replacement one that is of a similar age and value.
You’ll be able to get back on the road quickly, and you won’t be stuck taking public transportation to and from work.
Liability Insurance
Liability insurance is the type that most drivers will want to have. It’s this insurance that covers you if you cause an accident, and negligence is the cause.
It will pay for another driver’s medical bills if you hit their vehicle. It will also pay for their vehicle damage. However, keep in mind that this type doesn’t pay for your vehicle damage and injuries.
Most states require drivers to have this insurance, even if they don’t need some of the others. It makes sense because nobody should be on the road without insurance that covers the other driver if the individual in question makes a bad driving mistake or plows into their car after ingesting alcohol or drugs.
Don’t get liability insurance and then think that it works as blanket coverage. If this is your only insurance type, and you hit another car, this covers them, but not yourself. If you want to cover your own medical bills and vehicle, you’ll need to get additional coverage.
Which Ones Should You Get?
As we stated earlier, the first thing you’ll need to do before you drive anywhere is to see what your state requires and to get adequate coverage as mandated. After that, it becomes a matter of how much money you’re willing to spend every month or quarter.