The Availability Of Car Insurance Coverage In The US

by Mark Walters

What auto insurance coverage is available in the United States of America? This question is often asked and very essential, seeing it is compulsory to have auto insurance.

The driver may be protected with different types of coverage depending on what coverage the insurer purchases. Some states necessitate that owners of vehicles carry liability insurance coverage to cover the expenses in the event of an automobile accident. Some states, e.g. Wisconsin, have more flexible “proof of financial responsibility” requirements.

Liability insurance covers claims against the policy holder in the US. Generally, any other motorist of the vehicle being insured, (provided they do not live at the same address as the policy holder, and are not specifically excluded on the policy). In the case of those living at the same address, they must specifically be covered on the policy. Thus it is necessary, for example, when a family member comes of driving age they must be added to the policy. Liability insurance sometimes does not protect the policy holder if they operate any vehicles other than their own.

The other party’s insurance will cover you when driving their motor vehicle. Non-owners insurance policies may be offered that would cover an insured on any automobile they drive. This coverage is available only to those who do not own their own vehicle and is sometimes mandatory by the government for drivers who have previously been found at fault in an accident. Non-owners insurance policies are also known as Named Operator Policies. Drivers whose license have been suspended will find these policies useful.

In The Main, liability coverage extends when you hire a car. Comprehensive policies (“full coverage”) normally also apply to the vehicle being rented, although this should be verified beforehand. Full coverage insurance premiums are based on, among other factors, the value of the insured’s car . However, this type of coverage can’t apply to rental cars because the insurance company does not want to assume responsibility for a claim greater than the value of the insured’s vehicle.

Most rental auto companies offer insurance to cover damage to the rental vehicle. The above policies may be unnecessary for many users of credit cards, like Visa and MasterCard, seeing that the companies now cater for alternative collision damage coverage to rental cars provided that the transaction is processed while utilizing their cards. These benefits are restrictive to the vehicle types that are covered.

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This entry was posted on Saturday, October 3rd, 2009 at 12:15 pm and is filed under Auto Insurance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

 

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