An automobile insurance policy covers a lot more than just your vehicle. If you have a full coverage comprehensive insurance policy on your vehicle and you are involved in an accident, the policy will provide you with blanket coverage. Your auto insurance policy will pay to repair the damage to your vehicle, the vehicle with which you collided and any other property you damaged. A good GEC Insurance Services auto insurance policy covers the cost of any medical care associated with the accident and if you were at fault, your auto insurance company will pay a fair settlement in court if you are sued. Don’t drive without it.
What Auto Insurance Covers
Depending on the type of auto insurance you have and the company from which you bought the policy, auto insurance can cover a lot more than just your vehicle. Some of the things auto insurance covers include:
1. Uninsured and Underinsured Drivers
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage is an auto insurance coverage that pays for medical treatment for injuries not only to the policyholder, but also passengers in their vehicle if the policyholder’s vehicle is in an accident with a motorist that does not have automobile insurance or adequate coverage. This add-on to your standard auto policy even pays for damage to property in some instances if the accident’s legally responsible driver is uninsured.
2. Vehicle Repairs
Collision and comprehensive coverage insurance will pay to repair any type of damage a vehicle suffers either as the result of a natural disaster or an auto accident. An auto insurance policy will cover the cost of having the body, motor and transmission of any covered automobile repaired and returned to good, safe working order. However, standard auto insurance will not cover the cost of fixing electrical components and engine parts that are simply worn out from regular use. That type of automotive repair is covered under mechanical breakdown insurance or through having extended warranties on your car.
3. Property Damage
In most states, motorists must have property damage liability coverage as part of their auto insurance policy. This means if the driver of an insured vehicle is at fault and causes damage to someone’s car, fence, home or business, the insurance company will pay to have the necessary repairs made to the damaged property. The law in most states requires auto insurance policies to have enough property damage liability coverage to be able to cover the wronged person’s repair costs. However, in most cases, property damage liability coverage will not pay to repair the at fault vehicle. That requires a vehicle have collision insurance coverage.
4. Medical Bills
Bodily injury liability coverage is another thing that auto insurance provides. If a covered vehicle causes an accident in which people are injured, bodily injury liability coverage will help to pay their medical expenses including emergency services, hospital care, follow-up doctor visits, as well as the cost of buying crutches or a wheelchair. Your auto insurance policy’s bodily injury liability coverage can also compensate victim’s for income and wages lost due to their injuries. This covers the other car’s driver and passengers, pedestrians, and unrelated passengers in the insured vehicle.
5. Legal Fees
Auto insurance coverage also helps to pay the legal fees of covered drivers if they are sued because of an accident. The auto insurance will help pay for a lawyer and all the other legal expenses related to representing the covered driver in court because of the accident. If the injured party or their insurance company wins a judgement in court and is awarded compensatory damages because of their injury, the auto insurance policy of the person who caused the accident will pay the amount the court determines the victim is owed. In most cases, insurance company lawyers settle for and pay a fair amount to the victim.
6. Towing and Labor
Among the list of things auto insurance can cover are the cost of towing and labor that is required to take vehicles involved in an accident from the accident scene to the auto repair shop they choose. Towing companies have a flat fee for labor required to hook up and load the damaged vehicles on to their tow trucks. They also have a per mile fee based on the distance they must carry the damaged vehicles to get them to the auto repair shop that the owners of the vehicles or their insurance companies chose. All those costs are covered by the auto insurance policy and are separate from the cost of having the vehicles repaired.
7. Vehicle Rental Reimbursement
When people are involved in an accident that has left their vehicles unsafe to drive, it is common for them to get a rental vehicle so they can get to work and be able handle their daily responsibilities. Often people pay the cost of getting a rental vehicle in the immediate aftermath of the accident while their vehicle is being repaired. Once the vehicle is repaired and they return the rental vehicle, they then contact the insurance company and request a check for vehicle rental reimbursement. A good auto insurance policy usually includes vehicle rental reimbursement that pays for a rental vehicle until the damaged vehicle is repaired.
8. Liability Insurance
Most states have laws in place that require every automobile on the road to carry some type of liability insurance. That is the minimum type of coverage every auto insurance policy must provide. The amount of liability insurance an automobile must have to legally operate varies from state to state. However, auto liability insurance policies must have both bodily injury liability and property damage liability coverage. Vehicle liability insurance coverage is an auto insurance policy offering financial protection to third parties should they or their property be harmed by an insured driver.
9. Personal Injury Protection (PIP)
Personal injury protection coverage is an extremely beneficial available option people who own automobiles and want more protection than a standard auto insurance policy can provide. PIP insurance policies can provide accident-related health insurance, cover vehicle and property damage repair, lost wages and compensation and many other things a standard auto insurance policy does not offer. Getting personal injury protection in addition to a basic auto insurance policy can make it easier to cover all the many expenses associated with an automobile accident without wiping out the at-fault driver financially.
Comprehensive, Affordable Auto Insurance Coverage
Every motorist should at least have liability auto insurance. It does much more than just keep you legal and take care of damaged vehicles and injured should you get in an accident. Most agencies can offer just the basic auto insurance coverage for which any driver can qualify. The experienced auto insurance professionals at GEC Insurance Services can provide the exact type of auto insurance that you need. Auto accidents can happen to even the most careful, cautious, highly skilled, experienced drivers. Do you want to protect more than just your vehicle in case of an accident? Contact GEC Insurance Services for all your auto insurance needs.
Why You Need Auto Insurance
It is the law in most states that every vehicle on the road must have at least liability automobile insurance coverage. It allows you to drive legally and prevents financial ruin if you are involved in an accident.
