Liability insurance, which covers the cost to repair damages caused by you, is usually your state's minimum automotive insurance requirement; however, if you are still making payments on your vehicle, your financer may require you to purchase additional automotive insurance coverage until you own the vehicle.
There are many different kinds of additional automotive insurance, and collision automotive insurance and comprehensive automotive insurance are probably the most popular kinds of additional automotive insurance. But what is the difference between collision automotive insurance and comprehensive automotive insurance? Don't they both cover everything?
No. Collision automotive insurance and comprehensive automotive insurance are actually quite different.
Collision automotive insurance is automotive insurance that will cover the cost to repair damages to your vehicle that result in an accident caused by you. If repairs to your vehicle cost more than the value of your vehicle, the automotive insurance company may deem your vehicle a total loss, in which case you will be compensated for the current and actual cash value of the vehicle.
Collision automotive insurance is usually the most expensive of the additional automotive insurance options, which is understandable since the automotive insurance company is paying for damages caused by their own policy holder.
On the other hand, comprehensive automotive insurance is insurance that will cover the cost to repair damages to your vehicle that result in an accident for which you are not at fault. These damages may be caused by incidents involving natural disasters, theft and vandalism, fire, and animals (think of deer running out in the road during your innocent drive home). Comprehensive automotive insurance will compensate you for the total cost of your vehicle before the accident.
Although many people opt to purchase only liability insurance since it's usually the only insurance required, consider paying extra for these additional automotive insurances. You never know when you, or an animal, will be the one to cause damage to your vehicle.
It cannot be emphasized enough how important car insurance is. It is that layer of protection that protects you in the case you are in an accident with an uninsured driver or you are cited to be at fault for the accident. However, what it protects you from is being responsible for your own medical and property damage costs when the other driver is uninsured and also protects you from a lawsuit if you are judged to be at fault for the accident. There are two types of insurance that you will become familiar with and those are collision and comprehensive coverage.
Collision
Collision coverage covers you when your car hits another vehicle or is hit by another vehicle. It even covers you if you are hit by an object. For example: If something falls off the back of a truck in front of you on the highway and hits your car, you are covered under your collision coverage. You choose the deductible that you afford. The higher the deductible, the lower the premium, but you must make sure that it is a deductible that you can pay at anytime because you never know when damage may occur to your vehicle. If the car is an older car, then the coverage may be for the amount the vehicle is worth. If you have a loan on your car, then the lender will require that you have collision insurance.
The protection that is provided can be quite significant as long as the vehicle is not a total loss. Depending on what your state considers a total loss in damage to the car is going to depend on whether or not the insurance company is going to pay for the repairs. If they are, let's take for example damages that are $1,500 and you have a deductible of $500. This means that you will pay the $500 deductible and the insurance company will pay the $1,000 difference in the repairs.
As stated before, this coverage comes in handy if you have a loan on your vehicle. Even if you don't have a loan, if the car is newer, you may want to make sure you have collision coverage since the repairs can be costly on newer cars. However, this coverage may not be necessary for older cars.
Comprehensive
Comprehensive coverage covers your own vehicle and other vehicles that you may be driving when an accident other than a collision accident occurs. Basically what comprehensive coverage takes care of are theft, flood, fire, and even damages inflicted by animals. Just like with collision coverage, the higher the deductible the lower the premium is going to be. However, it is important to pick a deductible that you are comfortable paying if something were to occur.
The protection method works the same way as with collision. If your car sustains $1,500 in damage and your deductible is $500, then the insurance company will pay $1,000. Comprehensive coverage is not insurance that is required by the state, but it may be required by a lender if there is a loan on the vehicle. Even if you don't have a loan and the vehicle is fairly new, you may want to have this coverage since repairs for newer cars can be quite extensive. Thos with older cars or cars that are not in good running condition may not want to have this type of coverage.
Importance
So as you can see, having collision, comprehensive, or both can be quite important depending on your situation. Just make sure that you are in compliance with state law and have deductibles that make you comfortable.
Both Angela Farnsworth & Amy Nutt are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.