Sunday, 24 April 2011

The Basics Of Car Insurance: In Simple Terms

By Lara Nelson


There is just no doubt about it but that you simply must have car insurance. In fact in all states of the US and most western countries for that matter, it's the law and if your drive without it you face stiff fines, and having your car towed. Even so, the fact remains that so few people out there who drive, and are covered by it really know a whole lot about it as a whole.

The minimum coverage you're required by law to have, is what's referred to as "basic liability" coverage. What this bottom-end policy does is pay for anything that you run over or into, and that includes people as well as material property. Even so, this type of coverage like all others will have a ceiling or payment cap on it.

Collision coverage - is the same type of policy, only with some "added extras" that you can pay for. This type of coverage does all the things that the above listed basic liability policy does, only with one difference. That is if you're involved in an accident, this type of policy will also pay for damages to "your vehicle" as well. This is precisely why a bank will make you carry this when you buy a car on payments.

Now uninsured motorist coverage does come in handy, even though collision coverage is mandatory. Why? The reason is simple and that is that not everyone follows the law, and carries it. You see, this policy will cover you for damages and injuries in the unfortunate event that you find yourself in an accident with someone who's not insured. Now it only covers you, and your passengers.

Medical Payments Coverage - is an add-on to policy that deals specifically with any medical bills that are incurred as the result of an accident you are in. Now you can buy a policy that already has coverage for medical bills, but they all come with a cap, where the coverage stops. With this type of policy, you can pay to have your bill payment ceiling raised, and this can be for any number of reasons.

The last on this short list, is what is called "comprehensive coverage" and now you may be wondering what hasn't been covered yet with the above listed policies. Well this form of insurance is there to cover you in the event of a natural disaster such as a flood, or heavy hail storm. It will also cover you if your car is vandalized.




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