Comprehensive Insurance Guide

Comprehensive insurance is a type of car insurance coverage that pays to repair or replace a vehicle when it is damaged by something other than a collision, like vandalism or animals. Comprehensive car insurance coverage is never required by state law, but it is usually needed for cars that are leased or financed.

What Does Comprehensive Insurance Cover?

• Theft
• Vandalism
• Damage from falling objects
• Flood damage
• Fire damage
• Damage from animals
• Damage from natural disasters
• Glass damage, such as a cracked windshield

Comprehensive Insurance Cost

Comprehensive car insurance costs an average of $162 per year. The exact amount you'll pay depends mostly on your car's value and your deductible amount. The higher your deductible is, the less your policy will cost. You can buy comprehensive coverage by itself, but it is usually purchased with collision insurance, which covers damage caused by accidents.  

Why You Should Get Comprehensive Insurance

You should consider buying comprehensive coverage if you cannot afford to pay out of pocket to repair or replace your car in a worst-case scenario. Comprehensive insurance is usually considered to be a good investment since it's cheaper than other types of car insurance and covers events that are out of your control as a driver. A good rule of thumb is that if the cost of comprehensive insurance exceeds 10% of your vehicle's value, you can consider dropping it.

To learn more, check out WalletHub's guide to comprehensive insurance.

It is usually better to have comprehensive insurance than collision insurance, if you need to choose between the two. Comprehensive coverage is inexpensive, can be purchased alone, and covers events outside of a driver's control, such as vandalism, theft, natural disasters or run-ins with animals, among other situations.

On the other hand, drivers with a history of accidents or moving violations and drivers who live in high traffic areas should consider investing in collision insurance. Given that collision insurance cannot be purchased without comprehensive, you'll get the benefit of both types of coverage.

Why You Should Get Both Comprehensive & Collision Coverage

If your car is leased or financed, your lender or lessor will likely require you to purchase comprehensive and collision insurance together. But even if you do have a choice, you should still consider purchasing both types of coverage.

Collision and comprehensive insurance are best bought together because they cover different situations. Collision coverage repairs or replaces your car when it's damaged in an accident, regardless of fault, while comprehensive insurance applies when your car is damaged by something other than an accident.

Ultimately, if you're still struggling to decide whether to purchase comprehensive or collision coverage, a good rule of thumb is to skip either type if the cost is more than 10% of your car's value. However, this is just a general guideline, and you should also consider whether you're in the financial position to repair or replace your car if it's damaged. 

To learn more, check out WalletHub's guide to collision and comprehensive insurance.

Comprehensive insurance covers vehicle damage caused by events other than collisions with other vehicles or stationary objects. For example, comprehensive insurance helps you pay to repair or replace your car in case of damage from vandalism or natural disasters, but it does not cover vehicle repairs after hitting a car or telephone pole.

What Comprehensive Insurance Covers

• Theft
• Vandalism
• Floods
• Fires (not related to a collision)
• Natural disasters
• Animal damage (including hitting a deer or other animal
• Glass damage

Comprehensive insurance is sometimes said to cover “acts of god” because it applies to things outside of a policyholder's control that can't really be predicted or prevented.

What Comprehensive Insurance Doesn't Cover

• Collision with another vehicle
• Hitting a stationary object (such as a house or fence)
• Damage caused by the road surface (like potholes)
• Roadside assistance (including jump starts and towing)
• Rental car expenses after an accident
• Medical expenses

Key Things to Know About Comprehensive Insurance Coverage

Coverage Limits Are Based on Your Vehicle's Value

The coverage limits for comprehensive insurance are determined by the vehicle's actual cash value, so the more a car is worth, the more the insurer will pay in a claim.

Comprehensive Insurance Includes Deductibles

Deductibles typically range from $100 to $1,000 and must be paid before your insurer will cover the rest of the claim.

Comprehensive Is Usually Paired with Collision Insurance

Comprehensive insurance is often purchased in conjunction with collision insurance so the policyholder is protected from both accident-related and non-accident-related damage.  

Comprehensive Insurance Is Not Required By Law

While no states require drivers to have comprehensive insurance, you may be required to purchase it if you have a loan or lease on your vehicle.

To learn more, check out WalletHub's guide to comprehensive insurance.

Comprehensive insurance costs $153 per year on average, making it an inexpensive coverage option. Like with any type of car insurance, comprehensive insurance premiums vary based on factors like location, the driver's age, and the vehicle's value.

Additionally, comprehensive insurance is subject to a deductible, often ranging from $500 to $1,500. The driver can choose her own deductible when purchasing the policy. Higher deductibles mean lower premiums, and vice versa.

Comprehensive insurance covers damage to the policyholder's car from things other than an accident, such as theft, vandalism, or natural disasters. It is often bundled with collision insurance, which covers damage to the policyholder's car due to a crash. But you can usually buy comprehensive coverage independently, too. Although no state laws require comprehensive insurance, it is usually required for leased or financed cars.

Comprehensive insurance is worth it if the premium is a small percentage of the car's value. Comprehensive insurance might also be worth it if the policyholder cannot afford to replace the vehicle without comprehensive coverage, or if the car is driven or parked in a particularly risky area.

Although comprehensive insurance is not mandatory in any state, dealerships and lenders frequently require comprehensive insurance, along with collision coverage, on leased or financed cars. In that case, comprehensive insurance is definitely worth it, because failing to meet the lender's or lessor's requirements could result in expensive force-placed insurance or even repossession.

Factors to Consider When Deciding If Comprehensive Insurance Is Worth It

• Your car's age, mileage, and value.
• The cost of comprehensive insurance premiums.
• The risk of theft, vandalism, and natural disasters in your area.
• Your ability to pay for repairs or a replacement vehicle out of pocket.

An old rule of thumb recommended dropping comprehensive coverage when a car was five to six years old or had 100,000 miles. But this rule is now outdated, since newer cars have increased longevity alongside higher repair costs. Now, the standard rule is that comprehensive and collision coverage are both worth buying if the combined premium is less than 10% of the car's value, minus the deductible.

Cost is only one factor, however, so you should also consider how likely you are to file a claim, as well as what would happen to you financially if your car was stolen or destroyed by something other than an accident and you didn't have coverage. For instance, if theft, animal collisions, or natural disasters are particularly common in your area, you are especially likely to need comprehensive insurance. Similarly, even if your comprehensive premium is 15% of your car's value, for example, comprehensive insurance might still be worth it if you rely on the car and can't afford to replace it yourself.

No, comprehensive insurance is not full coverage, but it is a component of a full coverage insurance policy, along with collision insurance and any state-mandated types of coverage. Comprehensive insurance covers non-accident-related vehicle damage caused by things like vandalism or a natural disaster.

Comprehensive Insurance vs. Full Coverage

Full coverage is a catch-all term for a few different types of car insurance policies and is a phrase more commonly used by consumers than car insurance companies. Some define full coverage as a policy that protects the policyholder from anything and everything in the event of an accident, while others say it is any policy with anything beyond the minimum coverage required by law.

To learn more, check out WalletHub's guides to comprehensive insurance and full coverage insurance.

A good comprehensive deductible is an amount that the policyholder can afford to pay if their vehicle is suddenly damaged by something other than a car accident, such as vandalism or a natural disaster. Comprehensive insurance deductibles typically range from $100 to $1,000, but they can sometimes be as high as $2,500. You choose your deductible when you purchase your policy, and the higher the deductible is, the lower your premium will be.

Comprehensive Deductible Example

As a reminder, a comprehensive deductible is the amount that you have to pay out-of-pocket when filing a comprehensive insurance claim. For example, if a hailstorm causes $5,000 in damage to your car and you have a $1,000 deductible, your insurance company will only pay $4,000 for the repairs.

How to Choose Your Comprehensive Deductible

Before you decide on a deductible, you should consider how likely you are to file a comprehensive claim. If you live in an area that is prone to natural disasters or has a high crime rate, for instance, it may be a good idea to get a low comprehensive deductible.

You don't need to carry comprehensive insurance on an old car, unless you have a financing contract that requires it. Comprehensive coverage becomes less valuable as your car depreciates, so you could drop it. A good way to find out if comprehensive coverage is worth it is to compare the value of your car with the cost of insurance and your deductible.

You need enough comprehensive coverage to pay your vehicle's actual cash value in the event of covered damage. Although comprehensive insurance is not mandatory under any state laws, it's generally required for leased or financed cars and considered a good investment otherwise. The specific amount of comprehensive insurance that you should get depends on the value of your particular vehicle, which is affected by factors like make, model, and mileage.

What to Consider When Purchasing Comprehensive Insurance 

When you get a quote, the insurance company will automatically determine the approximate value of your vehicle and then provide enough comprehensive insurance to cover that amount. In other words, you don't get to choose a specific amount of comprehensive insurance when you're shopping around for coverage. 

On the other hand, you will need to select a comprehensive deductible. Your deductible is the amount you need to pay out of pocket before you can file a comprehensive claim. Most insurers offer comprehensive deductibles ranging from $100 to $2,000, though your lender or lessor may require you to select a certain amount.

For context, comprehensive coverage is a type of auto insurance that pays to repair or replace your vehicle when it is damaged by something besides a crash, like vandalism or a natural disaster. Many drivers who purchase comprehensive insurance also buy collision coverage, which pays to repair or replace the covered vehicle after an accident. To learn more, check out WalletHub's guide to comprehensive insurance.

Yes, State Farm covers hail damage for policyholders with comprehensive car insurance. Comprehensive insurance is a type of coverage that pays to repair or replace a car that was damaged by something outside of the policyholder's control, like a hail storm, vandalism, or a collision with an animal. Drivers who do not have comprehensive insurance from State Farm will need to pay out of pocket for hail damage to their vehicle.  

Comprehensive insurance is not required by any state laws, but it is usually mandatory for leased or financed cars. Additionally, comprehensive coverage is subject to a deductible. As a result, it might not be worth filing a claim if the cost of repairs is less than or only slightly more than your deductible.

Just bear in mind that in some states hail damage to your windshield or windows might have a different deductible. For instance, insurers in Florida, Kentucky, and South Carolina cannot charge a deductible for windshield replacements. And in Arizona, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New York, insurers must offer full glass coverage with no deductible, which might be separate from or part of comprehensive insurance.