How much auto insurance coverage do you need to purchase?

The minimum level of auto insurance coverage that you need to purchase varies from state to state. You can get to detail information about it from your insurance agent or from state insurance commissioner’s website. However, the main question is the minimum level of auto or vehicle insurance coverage sufficient for you? A vehicle accident may cost you far more than the minimum requirements specified by the state laws. So, it is not always the best idea to buy the minimum level of coverage as required by the state legislature.

How much auto insurance coverage do you need?

Apart from Wisconsin and New Hampshire, each state legislature has made it mandatory for the consumers to have liability coverage – bodily injury liability coverage for a person involved in a vehicle accident, bodily injury for all passengers wounded in an accident and property damage liability for an accident. However, the coverage amount varies from state to state. For instance, Georgia state insurance minimum requirements are 25/50/25. The first number refers to the bodily coverage for a person whereas the second number denotes the bodily injury liability for all persons. The third number signifies the property damage liability.

Some other examples: Wyoming – 25/50/20, Wisconsin – 50/100/55, Washington – 25/50/20, Texas – 25/50/10, Indiana – 25/50/10, Massachusetts – 20/40/5, Colorado – 25/50/15, Nebraska – 25/50/25, Missouri – 25/50/10, Nevada – 15/30/10, Vermont – 25/50/10.

The above examples can easily show you that the minimum limits may not be sufficient to fulfill all the bodily liability and property damage needs. So, it is better to know about the state minimum requirements at first and then calculate whether it will be enough for you. Usually, it is recommended to buy $100,000 of bodily injury liability per person and $300,000 per accident. It will not cost you a huge amount of money to increase your auto insurance limits. So, you can always raise your coverage if you are not satisfied with the state minimum requirements.

Some states require you buy Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. This covers your own health expenses, lost salary and other expenditures when you are wounded in an accident. Some of the states that require you purchase PIP coverage are Delaware, Kansas, New York, Massachusetts, Michigan, Utah, Oregon, etc.

Finally, it may happen that you have purchased the minimum level of auto insurance as required in your state and have met an accident while driving in another state. Now if the minimum insurance requirement in that state is more than that of your state, then there is no need to worry about it. The reason is, your policy will extend to meet that state’s requirements.

For instance, if you drive in Delaware where the minimum level of auto insurance coverage is 15/30/10 and are involved in an accident in South Carolina (where the liability coverage is 25/50/25), your policy will increase to meet the state’s requirements.