<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\nBodily injury liability helps protect your assets against potential lawsuits. It pays the medical, rehabilitation, and funeral bills of your passengers, the other driver, his passengers, and any pedestrians hurt if you are the cause of the accident. It also covers pain and suffering awards as well as legal costs.<\/ins><\/p>\n\n\n\nYou should get at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident. When you have sizable assets, such as a stock portfolio or an expensive home, you should then consider increasing your limits to $250,000 per person and up to $500,000 per accident. What bodily injury coverage you need is a direct function of what you need to protect financially. However, the cost to raise payouts on this type of coverage can vary dramatically by region. Check rates closely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even if your assets are not that large, always keep in mind that so long as your income and assets increase, so does your liability. Property damage pays to repair or replace another person’s vehicle or other property damaged by your car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most states require only $10,000 to $25,000, but what if you hit a Lamborghini? If you can afford it, buy coverage of $100,000 and get an umbrella liability policy. Uninsured- and underinsured-motorist coverage covers medical bills, rehabilitation, and funeral costs, as well as losses for pain and suffering incurred by you or passengers in your car, when an accident is caused by a hit-and-run driver or someone who has little or no insurance. Not being adequately covered in the event of such a loss can be devastating to you – not just physically and emotionally, but also financially.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You should carry at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident. However, if you carry higher coverage for bodily injury liability, you should increase this coverage to a similar level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>The ‘You Probably Should Haves’:<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\nCollision and comprehensive coverage pays to repair or replace your car regardless of who caused the accident. Comprehensive pays to repair or replace your car after it’s been stolen or damaged as the result of a storm or other natural disaster, vandalism or theft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Coverage begins when the cost of repair or replacement is over and above your deductible. Choose the highest deductible you can afford. Ideally, a deductible no less than $500 would be a good start. You should cancel coverage once its cost equals 10 percent of the blue-book value of your car. You cannot collect more than its blue-book value on the used-car market; these values drop steeply as the car ages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Personal-injury protection (PIP) reimburses you for lost wages and for in-home care. You should carry only the state-required minimum. Your health and disability policies (read below for more information) should cover your needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Medical-payments coverage, also known as “med-pay”, covers medical bills for you and your passengers, regardless of who is at fault. If you have good health insurance, you may not need any. However, you may want to carry at least $5,000 to protect your passengers who may not have health coverage. The extra cost for that should be minimal<\/p>\n\n\n\n