Auto Insurance

Automobile Insurance; Commercial or Personal

(The following is only a guide and may require additional information that a knowledgeable insurance agent at Applied Insurance Services, Inc., will be able to provide.)

Most Property and Casualty Agencies offer one or the other or both of the above classes of Automobile Insurance coverage.  Many persons only want the cheapest coverage, without considering what they are purchasing.  Some others will want to protect their assets but do not know how to make a decision on adequate limits of coverage.  What do those numbers mean?

Personal Liability Coverage will look like:

Liability Limits:$100,000/$300,000/$50,000, or $300,000 CSL, while Commercial Liability more often appears the other way around; $300,000 CSL. What do those figures mean?

·        The first number is the amount the insurance company will pay for injury to one person who is injured by the insured;

·        the second number is the total amount the insurance company will pay for all injured persons; the third number is the most the insurance carrier will pay for damage to the property of others. 

·        Combined Single Liability Limits (CSL) is the maximum the insurer will pay for all losses resulting from an accident in which the insured is at fault.

These limits typically do not carry a deductible; coverage is from the first dollar.

None of the above provides coverage to the owned vehicle or its occupants.

Insurance Coverage for the owned or leased vehicle include (Physical Damage):

Comprehensive Coverage: This coverage provides protection for damage to the vehicle from various causes that does not involve colliding with other objects. Comprehensive insurance pays to replace or repair your vehicle if it's stolen or damaged in an incident that's not a collision. Comprehensive typically covers damage from fire, vandalism or falling objects (like a tree or hail). This coverage typically has a deductible that must be met before the carrier provides coverage. The maximum payable after the deductible is the fair market value, or replacement value.

·       Collision insurance, on the other hand, helps pay to repair or replace your car if it's damaged in an accident with another vehicle or object, such as a fence or a tree. This coverage also has a deductible that must be met before the carrier provides coverage. The maximum payable after the deductible is the fair market value, or replacement value.

The higher the deductible that is applied the lower the premium. The deductible is like self-insurance. It will typically take more than 5 years of savings to equal the amount required in a deductible. For example: If there is a $100 discount for increasing a deductible from $500 to $1,000, it could take 5 years to recover if there were a loss.  Here again, the decision is made in the effort to reduce net cost.

These two types of insurance are optional for vehicles that are owned free and clear. If the vehicle is financed or leased, the lender or lessor will require this additional coverage. The lender wants to protect the vehicle’s full value since it serves as collateral for the loan. The insurer will pay up to the fair market value of the vehicle at the time of the loss. Sometimes depreciation will leave a vehicle being worth less than the outstanding loan amount, but the lender will want to be satisfied. Having Loan Payoff coverage provides additional sums above the vehicles value, if the vehicles value will not satisfy the loan balance.

Personal Injury Protection (PIP) — Florida, being a No-Fault State, requires all vehicles to carry PIP.  This coverage provides reimbursement for medical expenses for injuries to you or your passengers. It will also cover lost wages and other related expenses.

Medical Payments coverage (MedPay), pays for the treatment of injuries you or your passengers suffer in a automobile accident, no matter who is at fault. It also pays medical bills if you or one of your family members is hit by a car while on foot or riding in someone else's vehicle.

At Applied insurance Services, Inc., we not only sell you what you must have, we recommend all you should have, giving you the advantage of intelligently making the choice.

Roadside Assistance:  This is additional value that can be added.  It provides assistance if the covered vehicle is disabled in anyway.

What is auto insurance?
Auto insurance protects you against financial loss if you have an accident. It is a contract between you and the insurance company. You agree to pay the premium and the insurance company agrees to pay your losses as defined in your policy.

Auto insurance provides property, liability and medical coverage:

• Property coverage pays for damage to or theft of your car.
• Liability coverage pays for your legal responsibility to others for bodily injury or property damage.
• Medical coverage pays for the cost of treating injuries, rehabilitation and sometimes lost wages and funeral expenses.

An auto insurance policy is comprised of six different kinds of coverage. Most states require you to buy some, but not all, of these coverages. If you're financing a car, your lender may also have requirements.

Most auto policies are for six months or a year. Your insurance company should notify you by mail when it's time to renew the policy and to pay your premium.

Why do you need auto insurance?
It's really all about protecting yourself financially.

• If you're in an accident or your car is stolen, it costs money, often a lot of money, to fix or replace it.
• If you or any passengers are injured in an accident, medical costs can be extremely expensive.
• If you or your car is responsible for damage or injury to others, you may be sued for much more than you're worth.
• Not only is having insurance a prudent financial decision, many states require you to have at least some coverage.

Questions to ask your agent
Your Independent Agent is an advocate for finding auto insurance that meets your specific needs. Here are a few things to consider as you prepare for the discussion:

• How much can you afford to pay if you get in an accident? (To keep premiums low you may want to have a higher deductible and be willing to pay more for repairs.)
• What is the insurance company's level of service and ability to pay claims?
• What discounts are available? (Ask about good driver, multiple policy and student discounts.)
• What's the procedure for filing and settling a claim? (Ask who to call and what happens after you file a claim.)