Different states mandate different requirements for auto insurance coverage, but the common theme among them is the need to provide basic Liability protection. Liability insurance is there to protect you, in case if you cause damage to something or someone.
Liability = “My Fault” Coverage.
Basically, the states want to make sure that if YOU hit somebody due to YOUR own fault, the damage will be covered by YOUR policy. YOU are being LIABLE for the damages, which can be to property (PD) or to people (Bodily Injury or Death).
State imposed minimum limits are presented as the amount that the policy will pay out.
EXAMPLE:
Bodily Injury Liability: $25,000 per person / $50,000 per accident means that if you injure someone and you were at fault, your policy will pay up to $25,000 for medical treatment of 1 person, or up to $50,000 if there were more than 1 injured person. If the medical bills are less, it will pay out less, but if the bills are more, you could be on the hook for paying the difference from your pocket. Imagine if there were 3,4 or 5 people injured in the car.
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PRO-TIP:
Required limits may vary greatly state-to-state and auto insurance consumers should always check the minimum requirements of the surrounding states, especially if they live close to the border with a low-limit state. If the surrounding states do not mandate adequate protection to cover YOUR needs, then you should increase your coverages to cover those possible gaps.
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Picture this:
A family from California sets off on a cross-country vacation trip. The driver is properly insured, meeting the state-mandated minimum coverage…
Now imagine yourself, sitting at a red light at an intersection 5 minutes away from your home (wherever you are), minding your own business, when this California driver rear-ends you – totaling your car and hopefully not causing you any injuries…
Think – how much will it cost you to replace or repair your car?? In some cars, a replacement of just one headlight can cost several thousand of dollars… Did you arrive at a value? If don’t have any points of reference, assume a third of the car’s price as the cost that needs to be covered. It’s not a scientific, but it will help you understand this issue. So, if your car can be purchased for $15,000 – assume that you got hit and now you need to pay $5,000 to get the car repaired. If you car is $30,000, assume the damage at $10,000 and so on.
Now, scroll down this page to the California Property Damage Liability requirement and see if that will cover your damages… (then come back up here).
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Does it cover your damage?
What does this situation look like in your state?
Will you be covered if your neighbor backs into you?
Is your liability insurance sufficient enough to cover damages that you might cause?
If not, then you understand why it is extremely important to have UNDERINSURED coverage. It covers you if you are a victim of someone who DOES have insurance, but their maximum limits are NOT high enough to fix or replace YOUR damage… So, if that same driver from California hits you and all you can get from him is $5,000, your insurance will cover the difference.
Uninsured coverage protects you if you get hit by someone who does not have insurance at all. According to different sources, 6 to 13 percent of cars on the road DO NOT have any insurance. That is 1 out of 16 as the best case scenario and 1 out of 7 in the worst. Either way, there is a good chance that if you get into an accident, it will be with a UN or UNDER-Insured driver.
Personal Injury Protection (PIP) is a type of protection that pays for medical expenses for you or your injured passengers REGARDLESS of who was at fault for the accident. It can pay for medical bills, lost wages, funeral expenses, and even childcare in some cases.
Mandated Bodily Injury (BI) limits also vary greatly between states. BI coverage can be as low as $10,000 per person and as high as $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident.
Some states mandate personal injury protection (PIP), while others concentrate on Uninsured Motorist coverage.
The bottom line is that You – the driver should know your state’s minimum coverages and understand how it affects you. If your state has low minimums, your potential risk of being stuck with the bill goes up, so you have to counteract it.
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Keys to Abbreviations:
Liability = Driver’s Fault
BI = Bodily Injury
PD = Property Damage
PIP = Personal Injury Protection
As you will see, not all of the states have the same level of requirements.
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Alabama
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Alaska
- BI liability: $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Arizona
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 bodily per accident
- PD liability: $15,000 per accident
Arkansas
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
California
- BI liability: $15,000 per person
- PD liability: $5,000 per accident
- Bodily injury/death liability to more than one person: $30,000
Colorado
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $15,000 per accident
Connecticut
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
Delaware
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
Florida
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
- PIP: $10,000
Georgia
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Hawaii
- BI liability: $20,000 per person/$40,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
- PIP: $10,000
Idaho
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $15,000 per accident
Illinois
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $20,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
Indiana
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Iowa
- BI liability: $20,000 per person/$40,000 per accident
- PD liability: $15,000 per accident
Kansas
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PIP: $4,500 per person in medical expenses, up to $900 per month for disability or loss of income, $25 per day for in-home services; $4,500 for rehabilitation; $2,000 for funeral, burial, or cremation costs
Kentucky
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- PIP: $10,000
Louisiana
- BI liability: $15,000 per person/$30,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Maine
- BI liability: $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident
- Medical payments coverage: $2,000
Maryland
- BI liability: $30,000 per person/$60,000 per accident
- PD liability: $15,000 per accident
Massachusetts
- BI liability: $20,000 per person/$40,000 per accident
- PD liability: $5,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $20,000 per person/$40,000 per accident
- PIP: $8,000
Michigan
- BI liability: $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident
- PD liability for accidents in another state: $10,000
- PIP: $250,000 (lower options or opt-out available for Medicare and Medicaid enrollees)
Minnesota
- BI liability: $30,000 per person/$60,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $50,000 per accident
- PIP: $40,000
Mississippi
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Missouri
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
Montana
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $20,000 per accident
Nebraska
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
Nevada
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $20,000 per accident
New Hampshire
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist property damage coverage: $25,000
- Medical payments coverage: $1,000
New Jersey
- BI liability: $15,000 per person/$30,000 per accident
- PD liability: $5,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist bodily injury: $15,000
New Mexico
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
New York
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
- Liability for death: $50,000 per person/$100,000 liability per accident
- PIP: $50,000
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
North Carolina
- BI liability: $30,000 per person/$60,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage per person: $30,000/$60,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist property damage coverage: $25,000 per accident
North Dakota
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PIP: $30,000
Ohio
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Oklahoma
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Oregon
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $20,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PIP: $15,000
Pennsylvania
- BI liability: $15,000 per person/$30,000 per accident
- PD liability: $5,000 per accident
- Medical benefit: $5,000
Rhode Island
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
South Carolina
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist property damage coverage: $25,000
South Dakota
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
Tennessee
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $15,000 per accident
Texas
- BI liability: $30,000 per person/$60,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
Utah
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$65,000 per accident
- PD liability: $15,000 per accident
Virginia
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $20,000 per accident
Vermont
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist property damage coverage: $10,000 per accident
Washington
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
Washington, D.C.
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: $20,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist property damage coverage: $5,000 per accident
West Virginia
- BI liability: $20,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person
Wisconsin
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $10,000 per accident
- Uninsured motorist coverage: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
Wyoming
- BI liability: $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident
- PD liability: $20,000 per accident
Figures: 2021