Inexpensive Car insurance - At what Liability Limit?
Filed Under (Finance) by Joseph Welusz on 31-07-2008
Tagged Under : Finance
Before you try to decide what the right amount of coverage should be. You first need to understand what Automobile Liability Insurance covers. There are always two factors that make up liability coverage. There is bodily injury and property damage liability.
Bodily injury liability covers just that, injuries that are caused do to an auto accident:
1. Emergency aid at the scene
2. Doctor bills due to the accident
3. Money for lost wages
4. Final expenses
5. Legal counsel costs
Property damage liability protects you against damages that you cause to another in a car accident.
1. Homes, building, etc that receive structural damage
2. Repair or replacement costs for other stationary objects
3. Vehicle repair or replacement costs
So, what coverage limit are right for you? Every state compiles there minimum guidelines individually. 15,000/30,000/15,000 is the minimal norm but that may vary from state to state so check your state guidelines. You might have noticed that there are three coverage figures and not two. This is because bodily injury liability usually comes in a split limit unless you request a single limit of coverage.
Single vs split limit: In example above of 15,000/30,000/15,000 in coverage, this first 15,000 would cover individual injuries to others obtained from the accident you caused up to 15,000 per person. The 30,000 represents the maximum pay out for injuries caused to the while accident. If you had a single limit of bodily injury coverage it would be equal to 30,000 for the extra accident broken up as needed.
The last number in your liability coverage is always your property damage limit in the above cast is was also $15,000.
You have probably realized the disadvantage of carrying stat minimum limits 15,000/30,000/15,000. With the price of cars rising and the already high costs of property around the country it makes sense to have more than the 15,000 for property damage. With medical expenses at there highest ever it only makes sense to raise your bodily injury limits as well.
The most common amount of coverage around the country is split limit of 100,000/300,000/50,000 but you might want to consider even higher limits. The cost to raise liability from 15,000/30,000/15,000 to 100,000/300,000/100,000 or even higher shouldn’t cost more than a couple of hundreds of dollars per year. I’ll personally spend a little more now to save thousands later just in case I was sued for expenses costing more than my coverage limits.
