Buyer Question: What is Vehicle Insurance and what does it cover?

Comment: Vehicle Insurance protects your insured vehicle, yourself and your family should you get into a covered accident. Vehicle insurance protection comes in several flavors.  A general description of the most common types of coverage is listed below.

Vehicle Coverage …

Collision Coverage – helps pay to repair or replace your insured vehicle after a covered accident.

Comprehensive Coverage – helps pay for covered damages to your insured vehicle resulting from a peril other than a collision e.g. theft, windstorm, flood.

Personal and Family Coverage …

Liability Coverage – helps protect you for damages to others if you’re at fault in a covered accident.

Medical Payments Coverage – helps provide payment for your reasonable and necessary medical treatment for bodily injury caused by a covered accident.

Underinsured/Uninsured Motorists Coverage - helps protect you for covered damage caused by drivers who don’t have insurance or don’t carry enough insurance.

Rental Reimbursement – helps pay expenses incurred for renting a vehicle when your vehicle is disabled due to an auto accident.

Emergency Road Service - helps pay expenses incurred for having your vehicle towed as a result of a breakdown or accident.

Buyer Question: Why do I need vehicle insurance?

Comment: Most states require minimum insurance coverage for bodily injury and property damage.  Some states also require uninsured motorist coverage and personal injury protection.  Drivers must have their states minimum required coverage to drive a newly purchased vehicle off the dealership’s lot.  Minimum coverage levels vary by state.  For you states requirements see your local insurance agent or an Internet insurance site e.g.  Insurance.com www.insurance.com, InsWeb www.insweb.com, ESurance www.esurance.com. 

Buyer Question: Can I (should I) purchase vehicle insurance at the dealership?

Comment: Many dealerships contract with a third party insurance agent to provide insurance for customers who either do not have vehicle insurance or don’t have the minimum insurance required by their state to drive a newly purchased vehicle off the dealership lot.

 It is usually more expensive to purchase vehicle insurance at the dealership than from a local insurance agent or an Internet insurance site.

The following steps take approximately one hour.

1. Contact your local insurance agent or an Internet insurance site e.g. Insurance.com www.insurance.com, InsWeb www.insweb.com, or ESurance www.esurance.com to determine the following:
   1. Minimum state coverage requirements
   2. Determine the coverage and coverage levels which is appropriate for you
   3. Inquire about availability and eligibility for insurance discounts e.g. renewal, multiple policy, good student, good driver, good credit score, safety features, low-risk occupations, senior citizen, professional affiliations.
   4. Obtain quotes from reputable insurance sources e.g. insurance agents, insurance companies, insurance Internet sites.
   5. Compare quotes against your current coverage and premiums.
2. Purchase the policy appropriate for your needs or at least bring your current policy up to the state’s minimum coverage requirements before visiting the dealership.
3. If the cost of your vehicle insurance increases with the purchase of your next vehicle you should review the section How much Vehicle Can You Afford.
4. Include proof of insurance in your Buyer Information Folder.

Insurance Disclaimer

The purpose of website eAutoAdvantage.com is to provide the user with general information about the subject matter presented.  Website eAutoAdvantage.com is not intended, nor should the user of website eAutoAdvantage.com consider it, to be insurance advice applicable to the user’s specific situation.  The user is solely responsible for the use of website eAutoAdvantage.com.  If the user has any question about a specific insurance situation, they should seek counsel from an insurance agent registered to do business in their state. Also see our general disclaimer.

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