You know it's against the law, but you've been driving around for a while without car insurance. Why? No matter how good you think you are as a driver, you must have car insurance. Accidents happen, and you need to be protected in case one happens to you. But not all car insurance is the same, and you may not understand how the different types work.
Liability car insurance is the first thing you need to know. This protects you from any claims...
You know it's against the law, but you've been driving around for a while without car insurance. Why? No matter how good you think you are as a driver, you must have car insurance. Accidents happen, and you need to be protected in case one happens to you. But not all car insurance is the same, and you may not understand how the different types work.
Liability car insurance is the first thing you need to know. This protects you from claims if you get into an accident and hurt someone or damage something. Most liability car insurance policies have three main parts: coverage for injuries to people, coverage for damage to property, and coverage for people who aren't insured. The first type of insurance protects you if you cause an accident that hurts someone else and they sue you. Your liability car insurance company will pay for any medical bills or lost wages that are true claims. If you hit a wall or the side of someone's house, you'll need property damage liability insurance to pay for repairs. Uninsured or under-insured motorist coverage protects you if you are not necessarily at fault and the other driver does not have liability car insurance.
Accident insurance and liability insurance are not the same thing. As you can see, there was nothing in the above description about fixing your car. That's because a simple liability car insurance policy doesn't cover it. If you don't want to pay out of your own pocket, you'll need collision car insurance. Collision car insurance pays for repairs to your car if, you guessed it, you hit something else with it. If you're the kind of person who likes to run over poor, defenceless animals for fun, this coverage isn't for you. To fix that broken headlight, you'll need full coverage car insurance.
In most cases, you can choose your deductible rate, which is how much your car insurance company will pay to fix your car. Most of the time, the car insurance premium goes down when the deductible goes up. Collision car insurance is a must if you lease a car, own a fairly new car, or make payments to a finance company. People with much older cars might not need this kind of car insurance at all. If your car is totaled, your car insurance company will pay you the market value of your car, less the amount of your deductible. If you can afford to pay for a new car on your own, you might not need this.
