Personal Liability Coverage

Personal Liability Coverage

Personal Liability Auto Coverage covers your liability to others for injuries or damages you cause while driving and are legally at fault, up to your policy’s limits. Liability auto coverage protects you in two ways:

Personal Liability
  • Bodily Injury Liability is required by law in most states. It helps protect you if you are legally responsible for an auto accident that caused injury or death to passengers in another car. It helps pay the costs of injuries for any passengers in the other car. Keep in mind that bodily injury coverage limits vary by state.
  • Property Damage Liability is required by law in most states. It helps protect you if you are legally responsible for damage to someone else’s vehicle and/or property in auto accident. It helps pay for repairs if you hit another person’s car or belongings (e.g., vehicle, house, office, store, trees, signs).

Be aware, Liability coverage doesn’t pay for damage to your own car Collision Coverage will cover your vehicle.

To learn more about this coverage or to find out your
state’s minimum contact us today.

Personal Liability Limits

Personal liability coverage is your first line of defense when you’re at-fault for an accident. Coverage limits are generally broken down like:

Bodily Injury Per-person limit

This applies to each person in another car injured in an accident.

Bodily Injury Per-accident limit

This applies to each accident in which multiple people from another car have injuries

Property Damage Per-accident limit

This applies to each accident in which someone else’s property is damaged

The bodily injury liability insurance coverage amount is a “split limit,” such as $100,000/$300,000. The first figure is the maximum limit of coverage for one injured person. The second figure is the coverage limit for two or more persons in any one accident or occurrence. You will likely see your limits represented as $25,000/$50,000/$20,000 Bodily Injury per person/Bodily Injury per accident/Property Damage per accident.

Example 1:

You hit another driver and cause them $20,000 in injuries and $15,000 in property damage. Your insurance should pay both amounts because all injuries and damage fall below your coverage limits.

Example 2:

You’re at fault in a car crash, but it’s a bit more complicated because you injured the driver and two passengers. All three have $25,000 in injuries, totaling $75,000. You might think you’re covered because you have $25,000 in bodily injury per person. However, $50,000 is the maximum your insurer will pay out per accident based on your coverage. You’re now on the hook for the remaining $25,000.

Pro Tip:

Choosing more liability coverage than your’e legally required to have is generally a good idea, and a popular one. On average, over 50% of customers choose more than thier state’s minimum limits for bodily injury, and over 60% of customers choose more property damage coverage than their state requires.

Consider a combined single limit (CSL) if you have a high net worth

If you have a high net worth, it might be worth taking out an auto policy with a CSL for both bodily injury and property damage. CSL amounts usually range between $300,000 and $500,000. Premiums for a CSL policy are higher, but your coverage limit can be divided in whichever way necessary to satisfy a claim against you.

Example:

You have a split-limit policy that covers bodily injury up to $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident. However, you cause an accident in which you’re liable for $120,000 in medical expenses for one individual, leaving you on the hook for $20,000. With a combined single limit of $300,000, your insurance would cover the full $120,000 since your maximum limit of $300,000 applies to any type of liability claim.