How Much Insurance Do I Really Need?

Steffan Kuntz — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 22:41:32 +0000

There’s no two ways about it: today’s economic climate is uncertain at best. If you’re like millions of other Americans, you’re looking for ways to save a bit of money. Worryingly, many are looking at automobile insurance as a possible way to save money. More than ever, people are choosing less coverage or even going without insurance entirely, hoping that they won’t be involved in an accident and therefore won’t need it. Unfortunately, hoping you’re not in an accident just isn’t enough.

According to a recent study, the number of people nation-wide who are going without auto insurance altogether is ballooning. One group expects 2010 to see as many as 16.3% of motorists uninsured. That means, of the 254.4 million passenger vehicles in the United States, as many as 41.5 million may be without insurance. With this many uninsured vehicles on the road, more insurance may actually end up being the better way to save money.

Saving Money

When looking at how steep insurance premiums can be, our natural reaction may be to choose less coverage as a way of saving money. But going with less coverage may actually end up costing you more, because you may not have the protection you think you have. Bare-minimum auto insurance may end up costing you more money and assets than you can afford.

The Legal Limits

There are three main types of insurance which cover accidents between two cars. They are:

Liability insurance. This form of auto insurance protects you from having to pay for repair and hospital bills for the other driver and passengers in accidents you caused.
Collision insurance. This type helps you pay for damage to your car in accidents which you caused.
Uninsured/underinsured motorist. Uninsured and underinshured motorist insurance offers you some degree of protection for accidents involving other drivers who do not have the required insurance.
Every state in the nation requires at least some insurance, usually liability insurance. Only Wisconsin and New Hampshire do not require drivers to carry liability insurance, instead only requiring uninsured driver insurance. The other 48 states each have their own minimum liability coverage, usually around:

$20,000 for injury liability for one person injured in the accident.
$40,000 for injury liability for all people in the accident.
$10,000 for injury liability for property damaged in the accident.
If you’d like to learn more about car accident litigation, visit the Wisconsin car accident attorneys of Habush Habush & Rottier, S.C. today.

Joseph Devine

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How Much Insurance Do I Really Need?