Let's be honest. Of all the bills you have each month, insurance is about the hardest one to pay. It is an intangible item. You cannot feel it, see it, or enjoy it. But if you are without it, including car insurance, when an accident happens, it will be the one thing you are glad you have.
Yes, insurance is a necessary evil for us here in America. Everyone is sue happy. Heck, just check out the commercials on the televisition. Lawyers are begging you to let them sue someone. And that is why you had better be sure that you have enough car insurance coverage to cover yourself in the case of an accident.
Your starting point should be what your state requires as the minimum amount you have to have. But, this should not be your stopping point. For instance, Florida only requires $10,000 for personal injury protection and $10,000 for property damage liability, which, in my opinion is not enough.
Personal Injury Protection: This covers medical, hospital, funeral expenses for yourself, people riding with you, and other pedestrians that you may hit. Now I am not sure about you, but $10,000 would barely scrape the surface of these expenses if you were involved in an accident and had to pay. A better amount would probably be at least $100,000.
Property Damage Liability: This is the amount of car insurance coverage that you will have if you damage somone else's property. This could include a person's car, house, fence, animal, etc. And again, $10,000 would hardly pay if you hit a Lexus or drove into someone's living room. Again, a higher amount of at least $300,000 would probably be better.
But those are not the only figures you will want to consider. There is also bodily injury liability, rental car reimbursement, and uninsured motorist bodily injury which will cover you if the person that hit you does not have any insurance. And of course, you will want to have enough comprehensive and collision coverage. Comprehensive coverage will take care of costs incurred if you car is stolen or damaged in some other way like a fire. Collision, of course, will be your car insurance coverage for an accident. And you have to be sure to have enough, especially if you have a newer car and the title is held by a third party like a bank or credit union, in which these will be required.