Auto Insurance 101By Chris Tolamalu
Auto insurance, as the term suggests, is insurance that you can purchase for your vehicle (cars, trucks, SUVs, motorcycles, etc.). It provides protection against losses incurred as a result of vehicle accidents. While the product seems simple, there are many different types of auto insurance policies available for purchase. Depending on the policy that you choose, your coverage levels and types will vary. Broadly speaking, these are the types of auto insurance programs on the market today:
Coverage:
• ‘Comprehensive coverage’ (Comp) – This kind of insurance insures your vehicle against the cost of purchasing a new vehicle if it is stolen or destroyed in a fire.
• ‘Collision coverage’ (Coll) – This kind of insurance insures your vehicle against the cost of repairing the vehicle following an accident or the cost of purchasing a new vehicle if it is damaged in an accident beyond economic repair.
Protection:
• Personal Injury Protection (PIP) - This insures against the cost of medical expenses and lost wages related to the use, ownership or maintenance of a motor vehicle. This insurance is mandatory in some U.S. states.
• Medical Payments (MP) - insures against the cost of medical expenses for bodily injury sustained in an accident beyond any expenses that may be covered by PIP.
• Legal liability claims against the driver or owner of the vehicle following the vehicle causing damage or injury to a third party.
While ‘Liability insurance’ covers only legal liability, ‘comprehensive insurance’ covers PIP, MP, as well as legal liability. In the United States, liability insurance covers claims against the policyholder and any other operator of the insured’s vehicle. If, however, any other operators live at the same address, they must specifically be covered on the policy. For rented vehicles, most rental car companies offer insurance to cover damage to the rental vehicle.
While comprehensive insurance covers most aspects of damage which can affect the car itself or the driver, there is one risk associated with buying a new car is not covered even by comprehensive insurance – once the car is bought, there is a sharp decline in its value. During this period (immediately after a car is bought), in which the remaining car payments exceed the value of the vehicle and thus the compensation the insurer will pay for a ‘totaled’ (destroyed, or written-off) vehicle, customers may consider purchasing ‘GAP insurance’. GAP insurance was established in the early 1980's to provide protection to consumers based on buying and market trends.
|
Unraveling Rental Insurance
You?ve probably been there before. You?re standing at the car rental counter, and the agent is trying to terrify you into purchasing an insurance package that totals more than the rental itself. After all, they?re not getting rich off that super $10 a-day deal that you snagged on-line.
ACRA Executive Director Visits Arizona to Express Views on Insurance Legislation
The legislation is being sponsored by state Sen. John McComish (R, LD 20 - Phoenix/Chandler), chairman of the senate banking and insurance committee.
J.D. Power and LMC Automotive Report: January New-Vehicle Retail Sales Show Continued Strength from Robust 2011 Close
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., Jan. 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- New-vehicle retail sales performance in January is abating fears of any reversal from the strong close to 2011, according to a monthly sales forecast ...
J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Many New-Vehicle Buyers Avoid Certain Brands Due to "Conventional Wisdom" about ...
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., Jan. 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 40 percent of new-vehicle buyers who avoided a particular model due to quality or reliability concerns say they based their opinions on ...
Battling with memory loss, Dorsett joins concussion lawsuit against NFL
Tony Dorsett traces several health problems to concussions during his NFL career, and he has joined more than 300 former players in suing the NFL, its teams and, in some cases, helmet maker Riddell.
Donations flood in for Sarah Burke's family
Sarah Burke's family says it has not yet received a bill from the Utah hospital where the freestyle skier underwent surgery before she died Thursday, but that a flood of donations has ensured they "will not have any financial burden related to her care."
2011 Champions
Compiled by ROBBIE MENDELSON AEROBIC GYMNASTICS FISAF World Championships Senior Men -- Cameron Brown, Australia Senior Women -- Irina Matilainen, Finland Senior Mixed Pairs -- Brown and Allira Bull, Australia Senior Team -- Czech Republic Senior Aerobic -- OXYFAN (Czech Republic) Senior Step -- OXYFAN (Czech Republic) ALPINE SKIING World Ski Championships Men Downhill -- Erik Guay, Canada ...
Easy And Practical Ways To Save For A Vacation
These simple changes to your spending and saving habits can put your next vacation easily within reach.
Silence like a cancer grows
If American politics in 2012 had a soundtrack it would have to be The Sound of Silence, the evocative song written by Paul Simon after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963.
Bears Come Back to Defeat Charlotte, Earn Mid-Week Sweep
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Ryan Potulny provided two goals and an assist while Keith Aucoin added three more assists to power the HERSHEY BEARS to a 4-3 victory over the Charlotte Checkers on Thursday night at Time Warner Cable Arena.
|
