Insurance
| Author | Jeffrey Wilson |
| Pages | 71-75 |
Page 71
For anyone who has ever owned a car, auto insurance is something almost impossible to do without. Forty-six states and the District of Columbia now require automobile owners to carry some form of automobile insurance, and even if you are residents of one of the few states that does not require some sort of insurance policy on your car, it's a good idea probably if you to have insurance anyway.
Why? Because accidents do happen, they can be expensive, and auto insurance is often the only way for car owners to protect themselves from damages, liability, and possible a hefty court settlement. As with anything else so ubiquitous, there are different types of auto insurance designed to suit different types of drivers and cars. Auto insurance requirements vary from state-to-state, with some states requiring more coverage than others. Some states also have no fault laws in place, which require insurers to pay for certain accidents no matter who is at fault. Whatever the case, it is good to know some of the basics of auto insurance before deciding on buying a specific policy for your car.
Liability insurance is the most basic form of insurance. It pays if the insured is at fault in an accident. Generally speaking, it covers medical injuries and property damage to the other driver. It can also cover for pain and suffering and legal bills of the other driver as well. Owners are required to carry liability insurance in the vast majority of states. It is also required for rental cars and for drivers of third-party owned vehicles.
Liability insurance usually covers the named insured on the policy, the named insured's spouse and children, any blood relative of theirs by marriage, or adoption, including foster children, and anyone driving the car with the insured's permission. It covers named vehicles in the policy, as well as added vehicles that the named insured replaces the original named vehicle with in the policy. Most of the time (though not always), it also covers non-named vehicles if the named insured was driving, and any additional non-named vehicle the named insured acquires during the policy period, providing the named insured informs the insurance company during a specified period.
Temporary vehicles that substitute for an insured vehicle that is out of service because of repairs or be-
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cause it has been totaled are usually covered as well, though again, this is not always the case and an insured individuals should check their policies to determine the exact limits of their coverage.
Drivers who use a named vehicle without the named insured's permission are not covered by a liability policy, although the vehicle itself may be. Also rental cars that are not being used to replace a named vehicle being repaired may not be covered unless the named insured pays a special premium.
In the 47 states and the District of Columbia that require liability insurance, a minimum amount of coverage is also required. Even the states that do not require liability insurance insist that when liability insurance is purchased in the state, it needs to meet a minimum requirement.
These minimum requirements are usually represented by a series of three numbers. The first number represents the amount of money (in thousands) an insurance company is required to pay for bodily injury for one person injured in an accident. The second number represents the amount an insurance company is required to pay in total for all the injuries in an accident. The final number represents the amount the insurance company must pay for property damage in an accident.
For example, the liability requirements of the state of Alabama are usually represented as 20/40/10. Thus, insured drivers in Alabama are required to carry a minimum of $20,000 of medical coverage for a single person injured in an accident, $40,000 of medical coverage for all people injured in an accident, and $10,000 of coverage for property damage.
Insurance companies are not allowed to sell policies that are under the liability limits. In Alabama, a motorist could not buy $10,000 worth of coverage for a single person injured in an accident or $5,000 of coverage for property...
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