What is liability car insurance? Liability car insurance is part of an auto insurance policy that provides financial protection for a driver who harms another person or property while driving a vehicle. Car liability insurance only covers injuries or damage to third parties and their property, not the driver or the property of the driver, which can be covered separately by other kind of your policy.
How Liability Car Insurance Works?
Liability car insurance helps cover the cost of damage resulting from a car accident. In many states, if a driver is found to be at fault in the accident, their insurance company will pay the property and medical expenses of other parties involved in the accident up to the limits set by the policy.In states with no-fault auto insurance, however, drivers involved in an accident must first file a claim with their own insurance companies regardless of who was at fault.
In those states, drivers are typically required to purchase personal injury protection (PIP) coverage, which covers their accident-related medical expenses as well as those of their passengers.
Liability car insurance consists of two types of coverage:
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The bodily injury liability portion of an car insurance policy covers an at-fault driver, so they are not liable for others’ emergency and ongoing medical expenses, loss of income, or ■■■■■■■ costs. It also helps cover the policyholder’s legal fees when the accident results in a lawsuit.
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Property damage liability helps cover the costs of repairing or replacing the vehicles of other drivers involved in the accident. It also covers the damage done to other forms of property by the policyholder’s vehicle
Do you need Liability Car Insurance?
In a word, yes. Every state except New Hampshire requires drivers to have liability insurance (though Virginia waives the liability requirement if you pay the state $500). Each state sets its own minimum coverage levels, and many require additional types of insurance (see table below)
State regulators put these requirements in place to protect drivers. If you’re in an accident and another driver is at fault, you should be able to get back up and running quickly. Liability insurance makes this possible.
Keep in mind, state-mandated minimums are just that — minimums. They aren’t recommended coverage levels or even default levels. It’s the insurance equivalent of a PG-13 movie rating. You need to be 13 to get in, but that doesn’t mean a 27-year-old won’t still be terrified, offended or sickened. Your tolerance beyond the bare minimum is up to you.
| State | Bodily injury liability/person | Bodily injury liability/accident | Property damage liability/accident | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $25,001 bodily injury liability/person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/accident | $25,001property damage liability/accident |  |
| Alaska | $50,001 bodily injury liability/person | $100,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Arizona | $15,001 bodily injury liability/person | $30,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $10,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Arkansas | $25,001 bodily injury liability/person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| California | $15,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $30,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $5,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Colorado | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $15,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Connecticut | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Delaware | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $10,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Florida |  |
$10,001 personal injury protection | $10,001 property damage liability per accident | |
| Georgia | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Hawaii | $20,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $40,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $10,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Idaho | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $15,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Illinois | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $20,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Indiana | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Iowa | $20,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $40,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $15,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Kansas | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Kentucky | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability per accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Louisiana | $15,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $30,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Maine | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $100,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Maryland | $30,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $60,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $15,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Mass | $20,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $40,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $5,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Michigan | $20,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $40,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $10,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Minnesota | $30,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $60,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $10,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Mississippi | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Missouri | $25,001 bodily injury liability /person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Montana | $25,001 bodily injury liability/person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/accident | $20,001 property damage liability/accident | |
| Nebraska | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Nevada | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $20,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| New Hampshire | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| New Jersey | |
|
$5,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| New Mexico | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $10,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| New York | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $10,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| North Carolina | $30,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $60,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| North Dakota | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Ohio | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Oklahoma | $25,001 bodily injury liability /person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Oregon | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $20,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Pennsylvania | $15,001 bodily injury liability /person | $30,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $5,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Rhode Island | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| South Carolina | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $25,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| South Dakota | $25,001 bodily injury liability /person | $50,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Tennessee | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability/ accident | $15,000 property damage liability /accident | |
| Texas | $30,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $60,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Utah | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $65,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $15,001 property damage liability/ accident | |
| Vermont | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $10,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Virginia | $25,001 bodily injury liability/ person | $50,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $20,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Washington | $25,001 bodily injury liability /person | $50,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $10,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| Washington, D.C. | $25,001 bodily injury liability /person | $50,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $10,001 property damage liability /accident | |
| West Virginia | $25,001 bodily injury liability /person | $50,001 bodily injury liability /accident | $25,001 property damage liability /accident | |
What liability auto insurance covers?
The two parts of liability insurance cover a wide range of potential costs. Bodily injury liability insurance helps pay for medical bills an injured person may run up. It can also pay for recovery treatments or other ongoing costs.
On top of that, if you injure someone and they sue you, liability insurance can cover lawyers’ bills or court fees. Finally, it can pay for claims of lost wages. Without liability insurance, you would be responsible for all of those costs yourself.
Property damage is a similar story. If you hit a car, it can pay for repairs and rental cars. If you run into a building, it can pay for any restorations.Property can also include the things in a person’s vehicle. If you get in a little fender ■■■■■■, but the other driver had $4,000 worth of crystal in the trunk, your property damage liability insurance will cover the replacement — and the new bumper.
Three main limits of liability insurance
There are three main limits of liability insurance in an auto policy, which you’ll often see summarized by three numbers. For example, you may see something like “30/60/15” as your state’s minimum coverage.
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The first number (“30” in the example above, standing for $30,000) is the maximum your insurance will pay for injuries to a single person after an accident.
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The second number (“60” above, meaning $60,000) is the maximum for injuries to everyone you hurt in the accident — this doesn’t include injuries you may have, which are covered by a different type of insurance. The per accident maximum comes into play if there are multiple people injured in an accident.
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The final number (“15” above, $15,000) represents the maximum amount your insurance company will pay for property damage you cause. That includes damage to cars, buildings or anything else that isn’t a person.
One distinction to remember — while bodily limits have a per person limit, property damage liability has only a per accident limit. If you hit three cars, the total your insurance will pay will be represented by that final number ($15,000 in this example).
Summary
- Car insurance provides financial protection responsibility for drivers who do harm to another person or property in a car accident.
- Help bodily injury liability for medical expenses involved in the accident.
- Property damage liability helps cover the costs of repairing vehicles other drivers involved in the accident.
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Liability vs. Full-Coverage Car Insurance
In addition to the liability coverage your state requires, insurers offer coverage known as collision and comprehensive insurance. A policy with all three—liability, collision, and comprehensive—is sometimes referred to as providing “full coverage.” A full-coverage policy will cost you more than a liability-only policy, but it will also protect you against more financial risks.
Unlike property damage liability insurance, which covers another person’s car if you damage it, collision and comprehensive insurance cover your own car.
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Collision insurance helps pay to repair or replace your car if it’s damaged in an accident involving another vehicle or an object, such as a tree or a wall.
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Comprehensive insurance helps pay to replace or repair your vehicle if it’s stolen or damaged in an incident that’s not a collision. Comprehensive typically covers damage from fire, vandalism, or falling objects, such as a large tree limb or hail.
These two types of insurance are optional for vehicles that are owned free and clear. But if the vehicle is financed, the lender may require that you have them.
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Frequently asked questions
Liability car insurance is the coverage that pays to repair the damage you cause to other people and their things. Liability just means “responsibility,” so liability insurance protects you when you’re responsible for bad accidents happening.People also ask for
1-what is Umbrella Insurance Policy?
A type of personal liability coverage, an umbrella insurance policy handles claims that exceed what your homeowners or auto insurance will cover.
2- What Is Personal Liability Insurance?
A policyholder’s personal liability insurance pays for covered losses and damages sustained by third parties, along with related legal costs.
3- what Renter’s Insurance means?
Renter’s insurance is property insurance that covers a policyholder’s belongings, liability, and possibly living expenses in case of a loss event.
4-What is a minimum liability in Texas?
Texas law requires $30,000 for injuries per person and $60,000 per accident, and $25,000 damage per property damage. You can get many things besides all the above mentioned. So, explore the companies offering cheap auto insurance in Texas.
5-How much the full coverage costs in Michigan?
Auto insurance in Michigan is very expensive because it is too costly. The average cost of full coverage is $2610. But you can get the lower insurance policy as well
Conclusion
Liability car insurance is designed to pay expenses when an accident cause. Medical bills and car repairs can be very expensive, and a split second can be the difference between a normal day and the beginning of bankruptcy. So, here is the estimated values from above scenario
Let’s say the motorist had the following liability car coverage with their insurance company:
- Bodily injury liability limit per person of $60,000
- Bodily injury limit per accident of $150,000
The insured gets into an accident involving multiple people and is ruled at-fault for any damages.
- Person A has medical costs totaling $30,000
- Person B has medical costs totaling $40,000
- Person C has medical costs totaling $50,000
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