Choosing the best car insurance coverage
Getting the right level of car insurance is not one size fits all. What is most important to one car owner isn't necessary for another.
That's why it's critical to get a bird’s eye view of the different types of car insurance and the car insurance that fits your specific needs.
Insurance.com's Car Insurance Calculator is a quick way to find the right car insurance levels and options for you. While getting the cheapest car insurance rate is most important for some drivers, another person may want the broadest possible protection. Our calculator understands that personalization is vital when deciding on the best car insurance coverage for your situation.
How to use car insurance calculator?
The car insurance calculator includes a short questionnaire that asks you questions about:
- Your zip code
- Net worth
- Age of your vehicle
- Deductible level
- Whether you own, lease or finance your vehicle
- If cheapest car insurance or best protection is most important to you
After completing the questions, the calculator will tell you the right level of insurance for you. You'll also know whether you are paying for unneeded car insurance coverage or if you don't have the right level of insurance to protect you and your family's finances.
And don't worry if you want to know what the cheapest rates and best protection coverages would be, we let you toggle between the results for both.
How much auto insurance do I need?
The car insurance calculator recommends the right level of car insurance coverage for you based on your answers. This coverage can include:
- Bodily injury liability
- Property damage liability
- Uninsured/Underinsured motorist bodily injury
- Umbrella liability policy
- Comprehensive and collision
- Personal injury protection
- Gap insurance
As a refresher, bodily injury and property damage liability is what is required by most state laws for you to legally operate your vehicle on the road. Liability insurance covers damages you may cause others in an auto accident. This means damage to their vehicle or injuries the other driver or their passengers may have sustained. It will also pay for damages you caused to someone else's property, for instance if your novice teen driver hits your neighbor's fence. Liability does not cover your own vehicle for damage. Your state will have minimum requirements you must carry for liability, but experts recommend you carry higher coverages, such as 100/300/100, if possible. Higher limits do not cost that much more but give you a lot more protection. Remember if your limits are exceeded you're on the hook to personally pay any remaining damage costs -- and medical costs can add up quickly.
To cover your own vehicle, you need comprehensive and collision coverage. Comprehensive covers your vehicle for "other than collision" events like theft, fire and damage from weather events like flooding and hail. Collision covers, regardless of fault, if your car is damaged in an auto accident or if you roll or flip your car by accident. Comp and collision are not required by any state but is financing companies if your car has a lease or loan on it. There is not limit to choose for these coverages, the most your insurer will pay out is the value of your vehicle if it is totaled in an incident.
Gap insurance is not a required coverage either, but if you owe more than your car is worth you'll want it. It covers the "gap" left when your insurance payout is not enough to cover the payoff on your car. Paying for this extra coverage is much better than continuing on paying on a car that you no longer car drive. If you sign up for gap insurance, your insurer will determine how underwater you are with your vehicle value and determine how much the policy would pay out.
If you live in a no-fault state, you'll be required to carry personal injury protection (PIP) to pay for injury you sustain in an auto accident. You put your injury claims through your own insurer first in no-fault states. How much PIP you should carry will be dictated by state mandates.
Uninsured/Underinsured motorist is required in some states as a way to cover injuries you sustain in an auto accident if the at-fault party was uninsured or underinsured. In most states that don't require it, you can still add the coverage on to your policy if you desire. It's wise to first check your own health care plan to see if it covers auto accidents and if that negates the need for uninsured motorist coverage.
If you want extra liability coverage over what your auto and homeowner insurance offer, you can purchase umbrella insurance. This type of policy helps if you have a big judgement placed against you do to something covered by your auto or home policy and those limits are exceeded. Umbrella policies typically start at one million dollars of coverage and go up from there. If you have a lot of assets you could lose in a judgement, an umbrella policy is a way to protect them. It is optional coverage and how much you need depends on your assets and financial situation.
As you go through the car insurance calculator you will find out the recommended auto insurance coverages based on your answers.
Car insurance estimator
After determining the best car insurance coverages for your needs, it's time to shop around to see who has the best prices. Insurance companies rating systems vary so depending what coverages, limits and deductibles you choose the company that is best for you will vary. It will also vary based on your driving record and other rating factors that are specific to your current situation.
If you want to estimate your car insurance rates, no worries we can help you with that too.
We'll give you an option to compare car insurance rates from top car insurance companies side-by-side. You can then purchase the policy directly from Insurance.com, proceed to an insurance carrier's website or speak to a licensed insurance agent over the phone.
You can also view rates by age, rates by state and rates by company. With all of these ways to estimate and compare costs you should have a good idea of what you should be paying. However, the best way to really determine what your premium will be is to get rate quotes and see who is offering you the cheapest rates at this point in time.
How to estimate car insurance before buying a car
When you're in the hunt for a new car (whether it's a brand new car or just new to you), it is essential to shop around for car insurance rates at the same time. You don't want to find the perfect car only to find out you can afford the car payments but not the cost to insure it.
You can estimate car insurance by using our rates by car tool to get an idea of the average rate in your state for the vehicle model you're considering. Once your car choices are narrowed down, go ahead and compare rates for the vehicle to get actual rate quotes. This way once you're ready to purchase, you'll already know which companies were offering you the best rates and be ready to buy the policy to cover your new car.
Remember to check our car insurance calculator to make sure you are getting the recommended auto insurance coverages for your vehicle. You don't want to miss out on vital protection for your vehicle by skipping a coverage.
