The Basic Insurance Package

Listed below are some of the basic elements available in typical automobile insurance policy.  This is meant to illustrate what a typical personal auto policy should have.  Individual needs may necessitate additions and/or deletions.

Bodily Injury Liability

    * The medical costs of injury that you cause to other people, loss of income for someone you injure and the cost of your legal defense if you are sued and determined to be at fault in the event of an accident involving injury or death

Property Damage Liability

    * Claims against you for damage to someone else’s property caused by the auto.
    * Your legal costs if your car damages someone else's car or property

Collision

    * Pays for damage to your car caused by collision or rollover

Comprehensive (Other than collision)

    * Pays for damage to your car from disasters such as theft, fire, vandalism, flood and hail

Medical Payments/PIP

    * Covers the cost of doctors, hospitals, medical care, lost wages, replacement services and funeral expenses for you and/or your passengers, regardless of who caused the accident (Payments are generally stopped two years after the accident.) Coverage varies by state.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Protection

    * Covers the cost of injuries or death for you or your passengers in an accident caused by an uninsured or hit-and-run driver.
    * Covers you as a pedestrian for these same events
    * Covers expenses not adequately covered by an underinsured driver.

In addition to these standard coverages, optional coverages such as rental reimbursement, towing, vehicle customization and sound receiving equipment, to name a few, are available. You can buy these and other optional, or add-on, coverages for an additional premium, depending on your particular needs.

*Additional Suggestions:

Depending on your budget you may want to consider a policy addition that will pay all or part of the costs of automobile rental in the event that repairs to you car may be several days.