Car Insurance Explained
September 11, 2008 – 7:08 amWhile you may not think about it very often, car insurance is something which everyone needs. You don’t think about it much; until you really need it, that is. However, most people have no idea whether or not they are getting a good deal on their car insurance. If you educate yourself about car insurance and what to expect from a policy, you can avoid being convinced to buy a policy which you really don’t need.
The minimum coverage which you are required to have is different in each state. The exact stipulations of thee no-fault laws also vary slightly, but work basically the same everywhere.
The first part of your policy is the collision and comprehensive coverage, which covers the automobile itself. Collision covers those trees which jump in front of your car and rude drivers who put their cars in the way of yours. Comprehensive includes damage and theft (hail, falling trees and the like).
The second part of your policy covers liability - the damage done to another car when you are at fault in an accident. This coverage is shown in numeric terms, such as 25/50/10 (this means that your insurance company will cover up to 25,000/person and 50,000/accident - the 10 means your insurance company will cover 10,000 in property damage/accident.)
Medical payments to others, covers anyone in the accident, regardless of fault. Your policy even covers you if hit while walking. If you have an accident and no health insurance, this part covers you. It also defrays expenses from an accident your health insurance doesn?t cover.
There will also generally be coverage in your policy to account for uninsured and underinsured drivers, which covers you if someone with no (or inadequate) coverage hits your car. This part of the policy also covers hit and runs, Towing coverage can also be added to your policy if you opt for liability as well as comprehensive and collision coverage for a low fee.
You can save a lot of money on car insurance by keeping these rules in mind:
1. When it is time to renew your policy, get a variety of quotes and compare the prices. You can do a comparison of rates on many websites - however, look for quotes on insurance with the same coverage as you have now.
2.Check for discounts with your homeowners insurance company. Sometimes they offer a discount if you carry both products with them.
3. Ask if any discounts are available. There are often discounts available for drivers who have higher premiums (such as young drivers) who maintain good grades (if students) or for those who take additional driving courses.
4. Make sure that you really need to cover your car. If you don’t have a loan on the car, you might find it cheaper to just let the comprehensive and collision part of your policy go. Compare the payments you will receive if the car gets totaled against the Kelly blue book value - If this amount is less than two years of your monthly premium, you may want to drop this coverage and use the savings for a newer vehicle. However, don’t be cheap when it comes to liability coverage; it is well worth the cost.
5.Get a weather beater. These are older cars that you use for driving back and forth to work. Save the good car for special trips. When you assign the most driving to the old car, carry only liability and use the new car with full coverage for pleasure us only, you save wear and tear on the car and the money spent on the beater is more than covered by your savings.
Tags: Automotive & Cars
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