Liability Car Insurance Coverage for California
Reader’s Question:
I have California liability auto insurance. What sort of coverage does liability insurance has?
Isaac
San Francisco CA
If you have the California liability auto insurance you have coverages that cover others that you may cause damage or harm to in case of an accident that is your fault. Liability insurance though coverage does not provide you any coverage if your vehicle is damaged. Optional coverage of comprehensive and collision covers your car less the deductible you choose, in case of an accident regardless of whos at fault.
California liability auto insurance covers damage your vehicle does to others, damage for which you are legally responsible. If you do not have liability insurance you will need to pay the damages out of your own pocket.
Liability coverage is the foundation of a car insurance policy that is being required in most states. States differ when it comes to required minimum amount liability insurance. Typically states require
- Liability coverage of Bodily Injury (BI) and
- Property Damage (PD).
California liability auto insurance pays for any bodily injury and property damage expenses as well as your legal bills, medical bills and lost wages of the person you injured.
Does California Liability Auto Insurance Covers Car Repairs?
Reader’s Question:
Hi there. I got in a bit of trouble last night and bumped the car into a tree. Will my automobile insurance pay for the repairs to my car? How can I ask them to pay? I have liability insurance.
George
Long Beach, CA
Hi George, I hope you are all right after your accident. First of all, you will need to look at your automobile insurance papers or call your agent in California to find out if you are covered for the damage to your car. If you bought just the minimum automobile insurance required by the state, I’m afraid you might not have the right coverage as most states only require liability insurance which will pay for damages to other people or property.
In order for your insurance company to pay for the damages to your vehicle, you must have first signed up for collision insurance. However, they will not pay for the full amount of the bill. You will still have to cough up your share of the deductibles before they will pay for their share of the bill. Before you file a claim, first evaluate whether you actually need to. If the damage is minimal, and you can afford to pay for it, it may be better to take care of the damages yourself. If you do file a claim, know that this will be placed into your record and may affect your automobile insurance rates in the future. If you still wish to proceed, I suggest you ask your agent about your automobile insurance companies’ process for filing a claim. This will most likely involve some paperwork where you will be asked for details of the accident.
California Injury Liability Insurance
Reader question:
What is injury liability insurance?
Miranda
Thank you for asking, Miranda.
There are two types of California auto insurance injury liability. One is for the death or injury of a single person, and the other extends the first coverage to take care of the deaths or injuries of multiple people. It isn’t necessary to distinguish them when you go to buy your California auto insurance, though, as both are required. No California auto insurance company will sale you less than the required amount, which is:
- $15,000 for one person
- $30,000 for more than one
However, most California auto insurance companies will suggest a higher level of coverage, and it would be advisable to take their suggestion to mind, considering how much medical bills tend to be. They suggest you get at least $100,000 of liability for one person, and another $300,000 for multiple people.
This type of California auto insurance coverage is the key kind of liability. If you should cause a car accident through your negligence, then the person who is injured in that accident can sue, which is why you need high levels of this type of insurance. If the other driver sues for pain and suffering, or for wages they’ve lost, then you could be out of a lot of money if you don’t have liability California auto insurance coverage.
When you get into an accident, the bodily injury California auto insurance liability applies in a strange way. The first limit, for a single person, is what will apply to each person, but the second is for the entire accident. So, if you get into a car accident and one of the injured’s medical bills come out to $20,000, but you only have the required $15,000 per person California auto insurance coverage, then you will have to pay the difference.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
