How to Make Reading Your Car Insurance Quote Easier

Let's face it, there are few people in the world who actually enjoy trawling through a car insurance policy. All the legalese and multitude of terms make it heavy going. But it is important to know exactly what you are signing on for so that you can work out if it is what you want. Once you understand the different aspects of a car insurance policy you may choose to forego some of the options in return for a discount on your car insurance premium.

However, it is unwise to do this if you don't first know what it is you are giving up. There are a few basic terms that you need to understand like Collision Coverage, Comprehensive Coverage, Bodily Injury Liability and Property Damage Coverage.

Here is a snapshot of what each of the terms mean:

Bodily Injury Coverage - the funds that an insurance company would pay for damages caused to another individual involved in a motor vehicle accident.

Collision Coverage - this covers the cost of repair or replacement of the insured's car no matter who caused the accident.

Comprehensive Coverage - this is for the cost of repair or replacement of the insured's car for reasons other than an accident.

Property Injury Liability or Property Damage Coverage – this covers any costs associated with damage to property as a result of a motor vehicle accident. In many cases this is mandatory.

With Collision Coverage you can choose the level that you pay in the event you need repairs or replacements if your vehicle collides with another vehicle or property. This amount is called the deductible and basically the higher the deductible you elect, the lower your premiums will be. How does it work? Just like medical insurance, you pay the deductible amount, sometimes called an excess, first and then the insurance company pays the remaining repair costs.

Comprehensive Coverage encompases things like damage caused from falling objects, fire, certain natural disasters, theft and vandalism. Deductibles work the same way as with Collision; the more out of pocket costs to you, the lower your car insurance premium will be.

Liability coverage - either bodily or property damage - kicks in if in the course of an accident there is damage to either another person or property. For example, if you drive into the back of another driver or your foot slips off the brake onto the gas pedal and you plow down a mailbox. Your liability coverage will kick in and pay for the damages that you caused with your insured vehicle.

Bodily Injury Coverage is probably one of the most important aspects of car insurance. Think about it - if you were at fault in an accident and other people involved needed to go to hospital and/or lost wages from missing work, those costs would come out of your pocket if you didn't have Bodily Injury Coverage as part of your insurance. As I'm sure you'd know, these costs can quickly add up. This type of coverage can also help you if the other party involved in the accident takes legal action against you. Many states make it mandatory for you to have Bodily Injury Coverage.

Property Damage Coverage works in a similar way to Bodily Injury Coverage but it relates to damage to other people's property rather than to their bodies. Can you imagine how much it would cost if you accidentally drove into the side of someone's home? It usually covers the cost of repairs to another vehicle, building or anything else you might hit. As with Bodily Injury coverage, Property Damage coverage also helps protect you in the event of a related lawsuit.

Every car insurance policy is different and that's why it pays to read through several car insurance quotes from different companies so that you can make a fair assessment of which policy is right for you. Every car insurance policy is different and that's why it pays to read through several car insurance quotes from different companies so that you can make a fair assessment of which policy is right for you.

Now that you know about the basics of what you are paying for and why it is necessary, that job should be a lot easier. Not reading the Sunday paper easy, but hopefully much easier than you would have found it before reading this article.