Royal Florida Insurance

Bodily Injury Liability (BI)

This auto insurance coverage protects you in case of an accident involving injuries to others. The auto insurance coverage will extend to you or family members named on the policy. This auto insurance coverage will also cover those same people when driving someone else's car (as long as it is with permission).

The limits of coverage are usually displayed as two numbers, such as 100/300. The first number is the per person limit for injuries, including death, and the second number is the per accident limit for two or more persons sustaining bodily injury.

When do you need Bodily Injury Liability auto insurance? You've had an accident, it's your fault and someone got hurt. State required minimum levels of auto insurance usually focus exclusively on bodily injury liability coverage. This is because they want to ensure that an innocent bystander who is hurt by you while driving will receive compensation. With this in mind, you'll generally want more than the required minimum auto insurance coverage - particularly if you have personal assets you want to protect. In most cases (unless you are very wealthy) you shouldn't expect a claim or lawsuit against you for more than your auto insurance coverage unless the injuries sustained were very severe. But you have to be aware that it could happen and juries are quick to apply punitive settlements where injuries are severe. Therefore, buy a reasonable amount of auto liability insurance; keeping in mind your own circumstances as well as reasonable medical costs for an injury so that you are appropriately insured.
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Property Damage Liability (PD)

This auto insurance property liability coverage is for damage to other people's property caused by you (or your vehicle when someone else is driving with your permission). In the vast majority of cases this damage will be to another car. However, this auto insurance property liability coverage will also pay for damage to public property (lamp posts, telephone poles) or other personal property like fences, buildings or other structures.

Keep a reasonable amount of auto insurance property liability coverage without over-doing it. You can make some calculations to determine what auto insurance you are comfortable carrying. What is the cost of a current 'high-end' car? You might consider enough auto coverage to be able to pay for repairs to an SUV, for instance. But also consider your own driving record. If you've been driving for 25 years and you've never had an accident you might be comfortable with a lower amount of auto insurance property liability coverage.

And keep in mind the cost. You are always balancing what you have to pay now in consideration of what you have in damages and/or claims if you have an accident. Remember that the auto insurance company is also playing those odds. They operate so that they end up with a profit regardless of the number of claims.
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Medical Payments of Personal Injury Protection Coverage (PIP)

Medical payments car insurance or personal injury protection car insurance pays for injury to you and your passengers. You can buy a variety of car insurance coverage levels; from medical payment, to lost wages and even funeral costs.

Medical car insurance coverage can be very expensive; particularly if you are covering lost wages. If you have an existing Disability insurance plan, either personally or through work, it's not in your best interest to buy medical car insurance coverage for lost wages. If you have excellent Health insurance, you may be fully covered for medical payment for members of your immediate family.

This leaves the risk to passengers that are not part of your family who travel in your vehicle. If you car-pool for the local kid's soccer team twice a week, you may want this medical car insurance coverage anyway. But check your other insurance policies and be sure that you are not duplicating coverage.
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Uninsured and Uninsured Motorist Coverage (UM)

Uninsured auto insurance or underinsured auto insurance coverage is to protect you from others who either don't have or don't have enough liability auto insurance coverage. Even though state and provincial governments require a certain minimum level of liability auto insurance some people will not have auto insurance. Some drivers may have allowed their auto insurance to lapse, others may have only the minimum and then they seriously injure you; if their auto insurance coverage does not pay your bills then what? Or perhaps you've been hit by a 'hit and run' driver. If the driver is never found, who pays?

This uninsured auto insurance or underinsured auto insurance coverage comes into play when:

*You, a member of your family or a driver of your vehicle is hurt in a collision with an uninsured driver.
*You, a member of your family or a driver of your vehicle is hurt in a collision with a 'hit and run' driver.
*You are hurt and it's not your fault, but the other driver doesn't have enough auto insurance to pay for your total loss.
*You are hit by an uninsured or underinsured vehicle as a pedestrian.
*If you have Uninsured auto insurance or underinsured auto insurance coverage your auto insurance will pick up your bills.
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Comprehensive Coverage (COMP)

If your car is stolen or damaged by something other than a collision, with either a car or an object, comprehensive car insurance coverage will reimburse you.

What does this mean? If your car is damaged in the following ways you are covered by comprehensive car insurance:

Fire	Missles
Earthquake	Explosions
Flood	Vandalism
Windstorm	Rioting
Hail	Contact With Animals
Falling Objects

You were driving down the highway. A truck was in front of you. It kicked up a stone and you received a crack in your windshield? Comprehensive car insurance coverage is usually what pays for these kinds of windshield repairs. You were coming home from the cottage and you hit a deer. Comprehensive car insurance will cover the repairs - but not vet bills for the deer.

Be aware that some car insurance companies may have special provisions in areas which are hard-hit by natural disasters. This may require you to obtain a special rider for some kinds of damage. This will also increase the cost.

There is no set government legislation requiring comprehensive car insurance coverage on vehicles. However, if you buy a new car most banks will require that you have this comprehensive car insurance coverage as a stipulation of your car loan or lease.
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Collision Coverage (COLL)

Auto insurance collision coverage comes into effect if your car is damaged by an accident. In this case, 'accident' covers anything from collision with another car to single car accidents (such as roll-overs) and even damage by potholes. Collision auto insurance covers the cost of repairs to your car. Period.

This coverage remains in force whether you are at fault in the accident or not. Collision auto insurance is relatively expensive coverage. If you have a new car collision auto insurance is likely a good investment. If you have a vehicle which you are driving into the ground, don't buy collision auto insurance.

Also keep in mind that you can reduce the cost of collision auto insurance coverage by taking a higher deductible. However, this will expose you to higher costs in the case of an accident. You have to weigh the short term benefit and your driving record against the cost of an accident.

One thing to keep in mind: if an accident is not your fault, your auto insurance company will attempt to recover costs from the 'at fault' driver's auto insurance. If they recover their full costs they will refund you the deductible amount.
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