What Is Full Coverage In Car Insurance

Who Will Need Full Coverage

While most states, if not all, require drivers to have auto insurance, having full auto coverage is not mandated by law. However, there are instances when it makes sense to pay extra.

• You own a new or expensive vehicle.

  You may decide to get full coverage based on the value of your vehicle. If you think you cannot afford to pay for the repair or replacement of your vehicle if it gets damaged or stolen, then full coverage auto insurance may be a good option.

• You are paying for a car loan or lease.

  Lenders typically require liability, comprehensive and collision insurance for financed cars. This is to protect their investment if the car gets damaged or totaled.

• You regularly use your car to commute in heavy traffic.

  Using your car regularly, especially in heavy traffic, increases the risks of getting in an accident. Full coverage auto insurance gives you the necessary protection, especially if you live in an area where there are a lot of uninsured or underinsured motorists.

• You live in an area with extreme weather conditions or has high car theft rates.

  A full coverage auto insurance policy provides coverage even for weather-related and other non-road accidents such as falling tree branches. You also get coverage against vandalism and theft.

Uninsured And Underinsured Motorist Coverage

Uninsured motorist coverage helps protect you against drivers without insurance. If you’re injured in an accident caused by another driver, that driver’s liability insurance will usually help cover medical expenses you incur unless that driver doesn’t have auto liability coverage. In that case, your uninsured motorist coverage would help pay for expenses related to your injuries.

Underinsured motorist coverage works similarly: It takes effect if the other driver who caused the accident has insurance, but their liability coverage limits are lower than the limits that trigger underinsured motorists coverage in your state. Check your state’s insurance requirements or ask your agent for more information about this coverage.

The Cheapest Full Coverage Car Insurance Of 2022

State Farm has the best cheap full coverage policy that’s widely available, with an average rate of $1,310 per year or $109 per month.

The average cost of a full coverage car insurance policy is $2,058 per year or $171 per month. That’s more than double the average price of liability-only car insurance because it also includes collision and comprehensive coverage.

Compare full coverage auto insurance quotes from the cheapest companies to help you find the best full coverage insurance near you.

• Is full coverage worth it?

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What Isn’t Covered In Full Coverage

Full coverage doesn’t cover every situation you and your car may encounter. In fact, full coverage car insurance policies have exclusions to specific incidents. Each full cover insurance policy will have a list of exclusions, meaning items it will not cover.

Typical full coverage car insurance won’t pay for certain events. Common exclusions are:

• Racing or other speed contests

Typical comprehensive and collision policies wont cover every situation. Normal exclusions are:

• Mechanical breakdown
• Items stolen from the car
• A rental car while your own is being repaired
• Electronics that arent permanently attached
• Custom parts and equipment

What Is Considered Full Coverage Car Insurance

Technically, there is no such thing as a full coverage insurance policy. The term full coverage simply refers to a collection of insurance coverages that offer a wide variety of protections, essentially, protecting your car in full.

While full coverage can mean different things to different people, most drivers consider full coverage auto insurance to include not only mandatory state coverages, such as liability insurance but comprehensive and collision coverages as well.

With these coverages in place, you are protected if you injure another person or their property with your vehicle, and your vehicle is protected if it is damaged in an accident or by another covered peril such as fire, wind and even animal damage.

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Least Expensive Full Coverage Car Insurance For High Risk Drivers

Full coverage auto insurance is more expensive, due to all the extras. Add a previous accident or a couple of speeding tickets and the cost of full coverage may be unaffordable.

In most cases, you can lower the cost of your car insurance by dropping some of the coverages. But if you financed your car, you’re required to have full coverage car insurance including comprehensive and collision coverage whether you can afford it or not. You’ll need to find cheap full coverage car insurance for high risk drivers. Consider the following ways to save on a high-risk-driver car insurance policy:

Liability Vs Full Coverage Car Insurance

Home MediaCompare Auto Insurance Policies

Understanding the difference between liability vs. full coverage car insurance can help you make the best decision for your budget and your vehicle.

In this article, we at the Home Media reviews team will explain what the terms liability and full coverage mean when it comes to car insurance. Well also review the differences in coverage and cost between the two policy types. If youre ready to purchase auto insurance, consider getting quotes from a few of the best car insurance companies on the market.

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Does Liability Insurance Cover My Vehicle If I Get Into A Car Accident

Liability insurance does not cover damage to your own vehicle. Liability insurance covers property damage and injuries you accidentally cause to others. If the other driver caused the car accident, you can make a claim on their insurance for your car damage.

If you want coverage for your own car repairs after a car accident no matter who is at fault for the accident, youll want to buy collision insurance.

Do I Need Full Coverage Car Insurance

You’re required to have liability insurance or some other proof of financial responsibility in every state. Liability coverage comes in varying levels, from the mandatory minimum to as much as $500,000. You, as a car owner, are on the hook personally for any injury or property damage beyond the limits you selected. Your insurance company wont pay more than your limit.

But liability coverage won’t pay to repair or replace your car. If you owe money on your vehicle, your lender will require that you buy collision and comprehensive coverage to protect its investment. After you pay off the loan, the choice to buy comp and collision is yours alone.

Here are some rules of thumb on insuring any car:

• When the car is new and financed, you have to have full coverage. Keep your deductible manageable.
• When the car is paid off, raise your deductible to match your available savings.
• When you reach a point financially where you can replace your car without the assistance of insurance, seriously consider dropping comprehensive and collision.

Use Insurance.com’s online car insurance calculator to get our recommendation of what car insurance coverage you should buy. It’ll also recommend deductible limits or if you need coverage for uninsured motorist coverage, medpay/PIP, and umbrella insurance.

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What’s Included In Full Coverage Car Insurance

Full coverage car insurance is a combination of collision coverage, comprehensive coverage, and liability coverage. This means that in the case of a covered accident, full coverage car insurance will not only take care of the damages to your car, but the injuries and damages you may have caused.

Simply put, full coverage car insurance refers to a combination of car insurance policies that cover:

• Liability and legal fees for injury or damage to other people or properties
• Any of your own injuries or medical bills you might have after an accident
• Damage to your car and repair costs due to an accident or other similar event
• Any of your passengers injuries or medical expenses after an accident
• You and your passengers’ injuries if youre in an accident with an uninsured/underinsured driver

Uninsured Motor Vehicle Coverage

If you’re injured in an accident caused by someone who doesn’t have enough liability insurance or any at all, uninsured & underinsured motorist coverage helps pay for medical expenses, pain and suffering, and lost wages from the owner or driver of an uninsured or underinsured motor vehicle.

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Does Liability Insurance Cover My Car If Someone Else Hits Me

Your own liability insurance only pays others for damage you cause. It will not pay anything for your own car or your injuries.

If someone else causes an accident, their liability insurance should cover your car damage and injuries. But the other persons insurance will only pay up the limits they bought. If the accident was expensive, their insurance may not be enough to cover all your bills.

In addition, many drivers hit the road without any auto insurance. If they crash into you, they have no insurance to pay for the damage they cause. You can sue another driver who causes a crash, but not all drivers have assets to use to pay for a lawsuit judgment.

Do I Need Full Coverage On My New Or Used Car

The value of your car matters when deciding whether you should get full coverage insurance. Typically, the cost to repair or replace a new car is high, so having full coverage makes sense. The older and more used a car is, the lower its value is. If you think that paying for comprehensive and collision coverage is more expensive than the cost of repair and replacement of your car, then it may be best not to get full coverage.

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How To Save On Full Coverage Car Insurance

Shop around. To find cheap full coverage insurance, its important to shop around. Compare rates with at least three companies to find the cheapest rate for you.

Look for discounts. There are car insurance discounts for everything from getting good grades to owning a new car. Call your agent to confirm whats offered to maximize your savings.

Consider increasing your deductible. One way to lower your car insurance bill is by raising the deductible, or what you pay before insurance kicks in. Doing this will lower the overall cost of your policy, although savings vary by company.

Avoid traffic infractions. Speeding tickets, accidents and DUIs can increase your car insurance rates drastically, even after one incident. These infractions can stay on your record for three to five years, so make sure to drive cautiously if you want the cheapest rates.

Work on your credit. Your credit history can have a big impact on your auto insurance bill. In fact, our rates analysis found having poor credit can increase your rates as much as a DUI for some drivers.

Despite the name, full coverage insurance doesnt include everything. Depending on your state minimums, coverage that might not be considered full coverage include:

Shop Around For Coverage

When youre shopping for full coverage car insurance, comparing quotes from multiple insurers before purchasing a policy is the key to finding the best deal. Even after you have coverage, its a good idea to comparison-shop every 6-12 months and consider switching insurers if you find a better price elsewhere.

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State Car Insurance Requirements

Whether you finance or lease your vehicle, youll have to meet your states minimum car insurance requirements. Both the amount of coverage and the kind of insurance youll need to buy differ by state.

Depending on where you live, required coverage may include:

• Bodily injury liability coverage, which pays out if you injure someone else in an at-fault car accident. It also covers lost wages if the injured person cant work due to the crash.

• Property injury liability insurance, which covers damage to another persons vehicle or property in a crash you caused.

• Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, which pays out if you get into an accident that you didnt cause and the other driver doesnt have enough coverage to pay for your medical expenses or car repairs.

• Medical payments coverage, or MedPay, which covers medical expenses for you and anyone in your car at the time of the crash, whether you caused the accident or not. It can also cover funeral costs after a fatal crash.

• Personal injury protection, or PIP, which pays for you and your passengers medical expenses resulting from an accident regardless of fault. It can also pay for lost wages, funeral costs, child care and other services you cant perform due to injuries from the crash.

» MORE:Types of car insurance and what they cover

Once you know the coverage you want, compare auto insurance rates at least once a year to find the cheapest insurer for you.

Do I Need Full Coverage Insurance On A Used Car

If you took out a loan or lease to buy a new car, your lender or leasing company will most likely require that you carry full coverage car insurance.

But even if you dont have a loan or lease on a car, every state except New Hampshire and Virginia requires you to carry the states minimum for liability insurance. Its a good idea to buy more than your states minimum. A rule of thumb is to buy enough liability insurance to cover what you could lose in a lawsuit.

If you want coverage for problems like car accidents , car theft, vandalism, floods, fire, falling objects and collisions with animals , then youll need collision and comprehensive insurance. If you dont buy these coverage types, youll be stuck paying out of pocket if your car is damaged by one of these problems.

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Should I Add Optional Coverages

Even if your lender doesn’t require any coverage, a new vehicle is an important investment and should be protected as such. Comprehensive and collision will pay for damages to your vehicle due to accidents and incidents that are both in and out of your control.

If your vehicle’s value is extremely minimal , it may not make sense to carry physical damage coverage. Should you decide to select liability coverage only, make sure you’ll be able to purchase a new vehicle out of your own pocket in the event it’s totaled and uninsured.

Extra coverage like roadside assistance or rental car reimbursement is typically inexpensive and can be purchased at your discretion as well.

How Much Does Full Coverage Car Insurance Cost

As we mentioned before, there is no standard definition of “full coverage” car insurance. We can help you make sure your policy meets your state’s requirements along with your individual situation.

Your premium is affected by the types of coverages, limits, and deductibles you choose. If you are comparing car insurance rates, it is important to keep this in mind.

If you decide to carry higher limits than required by the state, the cost of your policy will probably be more than someone with the minimum limits of coverage. Or, if you choose a higher deductible, the cost for those coverages is normally lower than if you carry a lower deductible.

Please note:

The above is meant as general information and as general policy descriptions to help you understand the different types of coverages. These descriptions do not refer to any specific contract of insurance and they do not modify any definitions, exclusions or any other provision expressly stated in any contracts of insurance. We encourage you to speak to your insurance representative and to read your policy contract to fully understand your coverages.

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Full Coverage Car Insurance Cost In 2022

Full coverage car insurance is typically a collection of insurance coverage that not only includes liability coverage but also covers collision and comprehensive coverage. Here’s what’s covered — and what isn’t.

The average car insurance cost for full coverage in the United States is $1,150 per year, or about $97 per month.

No insurance policy can cover you and your car in every circumstance. But a ‘full coverage car insurance’ policy covers you in most of them.

Full coverage insurance is shorthand for car insurance policies that cover not only your liability but damage to your car as well. Here’s how to weigh liability vs. full coverage.

Insurance is meant to protect you from being sued, or left financially stranded by a totaled car, or ruined by an uninsured driver. That doesn’t mean an accident won’t leave you with expenses and hassles you wouldn’t face otherwise.

• Full coverage is an insurance term that refers to a collection of coverages including liability, collision and comprehensive.
• The average cost for a full coverage policy with higher limits is around $1,150 per year or about $97 per month which is more than a bare minimum policy.
• A full coverage policy depending on state laws may also cover uninsured motorist coverage and a medical coverage of personal injury protection or medical payments.
• A typical full coverage insurance policy will not cover you and your car in every situation. It has exclusions to specific incidents.

• Full coverage car insurance FAQs

Ways To Save On Full Coverage Auto Insurance

Some people decline full coverage auto insurance due to the high premium prices. However, driving without full coverage can cost you more in the instance of an accident or a vehicle theft incident. Below are some ways you can save on full coverage car insurance.

Shop around

Checking your options regularly can help you find affordable full coverage insurance. Compare rates from at least three insurers to find a policy and coverage that you need. Itâs ideal to shop around and update your insurance coverage before your policy renewal date.

Check available discounts

Companies offer various discounts for auto insurance policyholders. Ask your agent if your insurer has saving opportunities and you might also compare what other companies have to offer. Many insurers give discounts to drivers with clean records, those who have completed defensive driving programs and students with good grades.

Increase your deductible

Deductible refers to the amount you pay out-of-pocket when you file a claim. Increasing this will help lower your monthly or annual premiums.

Save money for emergency repairs and other possible extra expenses

Insurance claims may increase the cost of premiums. By having an emergency fund, you can prevent filing a claim for minor expenses like glass damages or roadside services.

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