When Should You Drop Full Coverage On Your Car

What Is The Difference Between Liability And Full Coverage

Liability car insurance only covers damages to other vehicles or injuries to other people when youre driving. Full coverage insurance includes liability coverage along with other types of insurance to protect not only others, but also yourself on the road.

Most states require a minimum amount of car insurance coverage, though it tends to be limited to liability only. On the other hand, a full coverage policy is usually optional.

When It Doesnt Make Financial Sense To Keep Collision Insurance

Anthony Battle is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER professional. He earned the Chartered Financial Consultant® designation for advanced financial planning, the Chartered Life Underwriter® designation for advanced insurance specialization, the Accredited Financial Counselor® for Financial Counseling and both the Retirement Income Certified Professional®, and Certified Retirement Counselor designations for advance retirement planning.

When reviewing your car insurance options, youll come across many types of coverage. Collision coverage helps pay to repair or replace your vehicle if its damaged on the road.

While this protection is required in some situations, it doesnt always make sense to add collision coverage to your policy. Learn more about how collision coverage works and when you might not need it.

Whats The Difference Between Comprehensive And Collision Insurance

Both comprehensive coverage and collision coverage help protect your car against losses and damages by covering the costs of vehicle repairs. Both coverages also have a deductible that must be met before repairs can be made.

The main difference is that comprehensive coverage pays for losses and damages to your car due to things other than accidents or collisions, while collision insurance covers damages due to a collision while on the road.

Situations where comprehensive insurance apply include:

• You hit an animal that results in damage to your car
• Your car is damaged in a hailstorm

Situations where collision insurance apply include:

• Another vehicle hits your car
• You swerve to miss an animal and hit a fence
• Your car slides on ice and strikes a guardrail
• Someone causes damage to your car while its parked and then drives off

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Types Of Auto Insurance Coverage

While opting for auto insurance coverage, the insurance company will ask you if you want full coverage or partial coverage. Full coverage is, of course, costly because it involves all the types below.

Collision Coverage: If your car collides with a fence or tree, collision coverage will cover your cars cost up to its actual value. This is an optional feature added to the auto insurance but could be mandatory to purchase if your car is on lease or loan.

Comprehensive: This is also referred to as paying the cars full cost in case of theft or vandalism. Other than collision, whatever damage that your car incurs is covered under comprehensive.

Liability: This includes bodily injury and property damage that you cause to other people. Anyone involved in an accident with you gets injured, their hospital bills will be covered, and if you wreck their fence or property, you will also pay the damages.

Personal injury protection: This type helps pay for your bills and hospital visits if you get into an accident.

As amazing as it sounds to have full coverage on your auto insurance policy, you cant ignore the fact that it will be more expensive. Expensive premiums may shake up your monthly budget, so make sure you opt for a coverage that you can afford.

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If You Dont Have A Big Emergency Fund

Do you have enough money to pay for car repairs or buy a new car if your vehicle gets totaled? Without full coverage, you will be responsible for the cost of repairs or replacement when something unexpected happens.

Keep in mind that car repairs can be expensive, especially for newer high-end vehicles. From a financial perspective, its probably better to use your savings for long-term investments and still opt for full coverage of your car.

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Are Comprehensive Insurance And Full Coverage Insurance The Same Thing

No. In fact, full coverage auto insurance is not an actual policy, but an industry term that describes an auto insurance package that typically includes a combination of liability, collision, and comprehensive insurance, as well as any other coverages your state may require.

Its not uncommon for a full coverage auto insurance package to be described as having the ability to insure your car no matter what happens to it. But remember, no insurance policy can guarantee 100% coverage for every situation.

Benefits Of Switching To Minimum Coverage Insurance

It’s financially smart to keep car insurance that includes comprehensive and collision coverages on vehicles that are younger than a decade. The cost of insuring a 5-year-old car equates to 27% of the car’s value.

After 10 years, the annual cost of car insurance represents 35% of a typical car’s value. While we don’t expect that the cost of insuring a car will eclipse the value of the vehicle until it’s more than 25 years old, the premiums one pays take up a larger proportion of the vehicle’s value as time goes on. For major brands, vehicles that are between 20 and 25 years old could see insurance prices that equal more than three-fourths of their vehicle’s value.

For instance, the cost of insurance on a 15-year-old car totals 46% of thea car’s value, while the driver of a 20-year-old car could pay rates that add up to 60% of their vehicle’s value. In fact, depending on the make and model of the car, the size of one’s insurance premium varies. We discovered that insuring a 25-year-old Ford Fusion could cost 100% of the car’s value before any claims were made on the policy.

As an alternative to purchasing a new vehicle, drivers may find it to be a better investment to switch to a minimum coverage policy one that offers only liability coverage. Under a minimum coverage policy, a driver’s insurance would only pay for damage they caused to another person. In return for less protection, the rates for a minimum coverage policy are much cheaper than those for full coverage.

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What Is Full Coverage Car Insurance

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Replacement Value Insurance Vs Gap Insurance

Replacement value insurance, also sometimes called new car replacement insurance, is a policy feature offered by some car insurance companies. This option gives you money for a brand-new car of the same make and model instead of the depreciated value of your totaled car if your vehicle gets totaled. This type of insurance can be an effective replacement for gap insurance.

Generally, your car must meet age and mileage requirements to qualify for this type of insurance. Also, its normally only available if you purchase collision and comprehensive coverage. If you qualify, however, this type of policy can completely replace gap insurance.

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Do You Need Comprehensive Insurance

Comprehensive coverage becomes less useful as your car’s value depreciates over time. That’s because the coverage will never pay out more than the vehicles value minus your deductible. So if you dont have a financing contract that requires it, at some point you may decide to forgo comprehensive insurance.

To figure out when to drop comprehensive coverage, first consider the actual cash value of your car and your deductible. If you have a $1,500 comprehensive deductible on a vehicle worth $1,500, youre paying for insurance that wont pay out when you need it.

Then, consider how much youre paying for the coverage. If the cost of the policy and deductible add up to more than your car’s worth, comprehensive coverage wont benefit you.

Heres the math:

If you see:

• A negative number, youre paying more for comprehensive coverage than its worth.

• A small positive number, comprehensive coverage can still benefit you, but a potential claim check would be small.

• A large positive number, or an amount you wouldnt be able to come up with in an emergency, keeping comprehensive coverage makes sense.

Even if you decide comprehensive insurance is worth it for now, revisit this math as your car ages and you get new car insurance quotes.

Do You Need Car Gap Insurance If You Have Full Coverage

Comprehensive auto insurance is full coverage. It includes collision insurance but also covers every unexpected calamity that can destroy a car, from vandalism to a flood. But it pays the actual cash value of the car, not the price you paid for it or the amount you may still owe on the loan. Gap insurance covers the difference.

Therefore, you need gap insurance if there is indeed a gap between what you owe and what the car is worth on a used-car lot. That is most likely to occur in the first couple of years of ownership, while your new car is depreciating faster than your loan balance is shrinking. You can cancel the gap insurance once your loan balance is low enough to be covered in full by a collision insurance payment.

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Why Does My Car Insurance Keep Going Up As My Car Gets Older

The coverage that is affected by the value of your car is the comprehensive coverage and collision coverage. In most cases, you will see the rate of these individual coverages go down over time. The insurance carriers have to account for the cost of labor, which tends to stay the same or increase over time.

What Happens When You Pay Off Your Car Insurance Policy

Your car insurance coverage won’t change after you pay off your vehicle unless you decide to make changes. Before you make any changes to your coverage, call your car insurance company to remove the lien from the policy. If your vehicle is totaled in an accident, the payment will now go to you instead of your lender.

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Full Coverage Differs By Providers But Can Include These Types Of Coverage

Full coverage can include:

• Collision. As the name suggests, collision coverage protects your vehicle in case of an accident with another car, an object, or a single-car wreck. It’s common to confuse collision and liability coverage. The former is a supplemental type of coverage that protects your own vehicle, while the latter is your primary insurance plan that covers damages if you’re at-fault.

• Comprehensive. Conversely, comprehensive insurance covers any non-driving related damages to your vehicle. Think weather, theft, vandalism, or anything else that doesn’t involve an on-road incident with an object or car.

• Uninsured/underinsured driver. This type of insurance covers damages or medical bills incurred due to a crash where the at-fault driver doesn’t have adequate insurance. The amount you receive with this policy is generally determined by the damages sustained to your vehicle and/or bodily injury.

Should I Get Comprehensive Insurance

It depends. If you finance or lease your car, your lender will typically require you to carry comprehensive insurance. Once your car is paid off, comprehensive car insurance is typically optional.

However, you need to consider what you would do if a tree fell on your car or if it was stolen. Without comprehensive insurance, could you afford to replace your vehicle or pay for an expensive repair bill? If the answer is no, you should consider comprehensive insurance.

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When Is Collision Insurance Worth It

Maintaining collision coverage can help protect your finances if youre in a crash by paying for repairs to your vehicle. In general, its a good idea to have collision coverage if:

• You have a new vehicle. If your car is relatively new, chances are the value of your vehicle is significantly more than what youd pay for your premium and deductible. So, the benefit of maintaining coverage would likely outweigh the cost. And it could save you thousands if youre in an accident.
• You cant afford to pay for repairs if youre in an accident. Even if your car isnt worth a ton of money, you may want to keep collision coverage if you wouldnt be able to pay for repairs. But keep in mind that if the cost of the damage exceeds a certain percentage of the cars value, the insurance company will declare it a total loss. And theyll reimburse you for the actual cash value of the vehicle , which may not be enough to repair it.
• Youre driving an older car you cant live without. Even if you drive an old car, it might make sense to keep collision coverage on your aging vehicle if you wouldnt be able to afford to replace it. It may make more financial sense for somebody thats in a paycheck-to-paycheck situation to keep the comprehensive and collision, said John Espenschied, agency owner, Insurance Brokers Group.

How Do Insurance Companies Determine A Cars Value

If your car is totaled in an accident and you have collision coverage, the insurance company will reimburse you for the actual cash value of the vehicle immediately before the accident. To determine the cars value, insurers look at multiple factors, including the make, model, age, mileage, options, and wear and tear.

Espenschied says most settlements go smoothly, but if youre unhappy with the insurance companys offer, he recommends negotiating. You want to make sure you scrutinize the value based on the features or options you have on that car. And look at retail prices locally.

If you cant buy a similar car in similar condition for what the insurance company is offering, let them know. And explain what similar cars are selling for in your area. To find out your cars fair market value range, check our tool that lets you enter your cars year, make, and model.

The point of negotiating isnt to get a Lamborghini to replace your Ford, its to make you whole again. If youre unable to reach an agreement, let the insurance company know you want a third-party appraisal.

Most personal auto policies have an appraisal clause that says the insurance company is required to hire a third-party appraiser to show how they arrived at , Espenschied said.

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How Much Should My Comprehensive Deductible Be

Your deductible is the portion of costs youll pay upfront for a covered claim. The ability to choose your deductible allows you to decide just how much financial responsibility youre willing to assume when it comes to repairing/replacing your car.

Most insurance companies offer a wide range of deductibles specifically for comprehensive coverage, from $50 to as much as $2,000, or possibly more. Just how much of a deductible you should select depends on whats right for you. In general, you should consider three things:

• How much your deductible choice affects your premium
• How much you can afford to pay out-of-pocket in the event of a covered claim
• The value of your vehicle

A lower deductible means youll pay less out-of-pocket in the event of a covered claim. This can be cost-effective, especially if youre prone to smaller, more frequent comprehensive claims such as windshield chips/cracks. A lower deductible can be good choice if you dont have the readily available cash to pay for unexpected repairs out-of-pocket. For example, if you get hit with a $1,000 vehicle repair bill, can you immediately come up with the cash? Keep in mind, however, that a lower deductible may mean a higher premium.

Is Gap Insurance Needed

If there is any time during which you owe more on your car than it is currently worth, gap insurance can definitely be worth the money.

If you put down less than 20% on a car, youre wise to get gap insurance at least for the first couple of years that you own it. By then, you should owe less on the car than it is worth. If the car is wrecked, you wont have to pay out of pocket to make up the shortfall between the insured value of the car and the amount that you owe a lender.

Gap insurance is particularly worth it if you take advantage of a dealers periodic car-buying incentive. If youre getting a deal for a low down payment and three months free, you are surely going to be upside down on that loan for many months to come.

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Getting Auto Insurance For Older Cars

Getting auto insurance for older cars is much easier than you may expect. If you think youre paying too much for coverage on your older vehicle, simply get a fast and easy quote with Clovered to see how much you could save!

Rethink your auto insurance premium with a free quote from the nations top companies.

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What Is The Difference Between Comprehensive Insurance And Collision

Comprehensive insurance is a type of auto insurance that helps to cover costs if your vehicle is damaged by a covered event thats not a collision, such as a fire, falling object, vandalism, and some natural disasters.

For example, if your car is parked in front of your house and a tree falls on it, comprehensive coverage could pay for the costs to repair it. On the other hand, collision insurance covers damage due to collisions, such as hitting another object or vehicle.

While both comprehensive and collision auto coverage help to cover the costs of a damaged vehicle, they cover damage from different causes.

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