Liability Auto Insurance


Liability auto insurance is the insurance that most states require and is the most important coverage you need to protect yourself against damages or injury you inflict on another driver, vehicle or other property. Liability insurance consists of two different policies, bodily injury liability, and property damage liability. The one covers personal injury to another and the other covers physical property.

Car liability insurance is broken into split limits (50/100/25) and would be broken down this way:

  • $50,000 worth of bodily injury coverage to cover another person
  • $100,000 total coverage for bodily injury for everyone involved
  • $25,000 worth of property damage
Each state requires a certain level of liability insurance so you will need to check with them. Auto Insurance In-Depth provides a handy table where you can find your states minimum disability insurance requirements. This table also indicates if your state is a no fault state. If you live in one of these states your insurance liability works a little differently. These states both require basic liability coverage and also limit the amount that an individual can sue for. In the event of an accident your insurance would pay for your damages up to a certain amount and the other driver's insurance would pay his. This no fault insurance is also called personal injury protection or PIP. PIP only covers 80% of your medical bills so you might want to consider medical payments coverage (Med-Pay) that will cover the other 20%.

The PIP coverage extends to cover lost wages, housekeeping associated with an injury and mileage. Because PIP only pays 80% of the costs your liability insurance will pay nothing until you have paid your portion. You might choose a deductible to help reduce the cost of your premium. This means you will need to be prepared to pay the deductible and your 20% first. Under some state laws, such as Florida, if you elect to have a PIP deductible you are responsible for that even if you are injured due to the negligence of another. This means you would have no right to recover these costs from the other person.

When you are deciding on an insurance liability policy be sure to check each and every detail so you are fully protected. When you get quotes make sure they are all for the exact same coverage limits so you know your comparisons are correct. This will help decide on the best auto insurance coverage for you. Your insurance agent should be able to help you in this decision.