Car Insurance
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Vehicle insurance is insurance for cars, trucks, motorcycles, and other road vehicles. Its primary use is to provide financial protection against physical damage or bodily injury resulting from traffic collisions and financial protection against liability that could also arise from incidents with a vehicle.
Car insurance is a safety net, you pay a company monthly for assurance that if something very costly happens, you won't become bankrupt from the cost.
Common Coverages:
Liability: Pays for bodily injury or property damage you cause.
Uninsured Motorist: Pays for Bodily Injury to you or your passengers as a result of an accident caused by another driver who has no coverage.
Coverages to protect your car...
Collision: colliding with any object or vehicle.
Comprehensive: damage other than collision including theft, vandalism, fire, etc.
How to use
You should use the insurance to pay for large expenses by filing out a claim, which means you tell the insurance company and insurance agent what happened. Take lots of pictures to send as proof, and get some witness testimony to be a secondary piece of evidence on what happened.
Things to know:
An insurance deductible is the amount you pay before the insurance company pays to repair your damaged car.
Auto Insurance does NOT pay for the maintenance of your vehicle.
Insurance Premiums:
Your car insurance premium or the amount you pay depends on your age, driving record, zip code (rural or urban), gender, type of car, and how much you drive your car. Every time you use insurance to pay for something that was your fault like an accident your premium goes up A LOT.
Ex. One woman I interviewed had multiple speeding tickets in her early 20s and one car accident that was deemed her fault and her car insurance premium went from $50 a month to $250 a month. This stays on your driving record for up to 7 years. Only when the driving infractions drop off your driving record can your high premiums drop back down to the normal car insurance rate. ​