Full coverage car insurance is an insurance policy that includes liability coverage plus comprehensive and collision insurance, along with any other coverage required by state law. Full coverage car insurance provides protection for car accidents and non-accident-related damage, covering the policyholder regardless of fault.
What Does Full Coverage Car Insurance Cover?
Full coverage car insurance covers the policyholder and their vehicle against accidents or other damage-causing events, regardless of fault. Full coverage car insurance also covers other people’s injuries and property damage when the policyholder is at fault.
What Common Components of Full Coverage Car Insurance Cover
Type of Insurance | What It Covers |
---|---|
Liability | Injuries to other people and damage to other people’s property caused by the policyholder |
Collision | Damage to the policyholder’s car after an accident |
Comprehensive | Damage to the policyholder’s car after something besides an accident, like vandalism or theft |
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist | The policyholder’s injuries or damage to their property if a driver without insurance or without enough insurance was at fault |
Personal Injury Protection (PIP) | Injuries to the policyholder after an accident regardless of who was at fault, plus indirect expenses like lost wages |
MedPay | Injuries to the policyholder after an accident regardless of who was at fault |
Learn more about what full coverage car insurance covers.
Cost of Full Coverage Car Insurance
The average cost of full coverage car insurance is $1,997 per year. For comparison, state minimum coverage costs an average of $720 annually.
Costs vary by state and insurance company, as well as based on coverage limits and deductible amounts. Additionally, a driver’s premium depends on their personal characteristics, including their driving history, age, and zip code.
Full Coverage Cost by State
State | Annual Cost of Full Coverage | Annual Cost of Minimum Coverage |
---|---|---|
California | $2,518 | $844 |
Texas | $2,312 | $780 |
Florida | $3,208 | $814 |
New York | $4,451 | $1,828 |
Pennsylvania | $1,848 | $501 |
Illinois | $1,738 | $662 |
Ohio | $1,122 | $414 |
Georgia | $2,476 | $1,095 |
North Carolina | $1,366 | $477 |
Michigan | $3,833 | $1,908 |
Costs reflect the average of a series of quotes gathered by Quadrant Information Services for a 45-year-old male with a clean driving record and good credit. Individual premiums will be different.
Learn more about how much full coverage car insurance costs.
Cheapest Full Coverage Car Insurance Companies
- Esurance: $129 per month
- Geico: $140 per month
- Mercury: $160 per month
- USAA: $167 per month
- Progressive: $168 per month
- 21st Century: $171 per month
- AAA: $177 per month
- Allstate: $194 per month
- Travelers: $199 per month
- State Farm: $218 per month
To find the cheapest full coverage car insurance, you should get multiple quotes from different insurers in order to identify the lowest rate for the coverage you need. Premiums vary based on several factors, including your state and driving record.
Learn more about the cheapest full coverage auto insurance.
Is Full Coverage Worth It?
Full coverage is always worth it for leased or financed cars. Additionally, if you can’t afford to buy a new car entirely out of pocket, or the cost for full coverage is less than 10% of your car’s value, full coverage is definitely worth it. The average new car costs more than $40,000 and that’s not including all the costs associated with an accident, in addition to taxes and fees.
On the other hand, if you could afford to replace your car on your own, you don’t drive very often, or your car is not worth very much, you may be able to skip full coverage insurance.
Learn more about how to decide if full coverage is worth it for you.
5 Tips For Buying Full Coverage Car Insurance
1. Shop around for coverage
When you’re shopping for full coverage car insurance, comparing quotes from multiple insurers before purchasing a policy is the key to finding the best deal. Even after you have coverage, it’s a good idea to comparison-shop every 6-12 months and consider switching insurers if you find a better price elsewhere.
2. Check for discounts
In addition to comparing quotes, you should also compare discounts to see what opportunities insurers give you to save. For example, most insurance companies offer a good driver discount for policyholders who go a certain amount of time without an accident or moving violation. You can also get discounts for things related to your policy, like having more than one type of insurance with the company or paying for coverage in full up front.
3. Carefully select your deductibles
When you purchase a full coverage policy, you’ll select amounts for your collision and comprehensive deductibles. The higher your deductibles are, the lower your premium will be, so selecting high amounts can help you save long-term. However, you still need to select deductible amounts that you can afford to pay if your vehicle is unexpectedly damaged.
4. Understand the different definitions of full coverage
Full coverage is not an official type of car insurance, and definitions differ. Some people define full coverage as any policy that includes liability, collision, and comprehensive insurance, while others describe full coverage car insurance as a policy that has the state-minimum coverage in addition to any insurance required by a lender or lessor. Similarly, full coverage car insurance might be defined as a policy that has more than the minimum liability coverage, or simply as an insurance policy that will take care of anything and everything in the event of an accident.
Understanding the different possible definitions will help you determine what coverage you want out of an insurance policy and the different ways others sometimes think about full coverage.
5. Know that a financed or leased car may require full coverage
If you have a financed or leased car, your lender or lessor may require you to have full coverage insurance. Your contract may even require you to have more coverage types, such as gap insurance.
If you fail to keep full coverage on your financed or leased car, you risk having your car repossessed or having to pay for more expensive insurance chosen by your financer or lessor.
Video: Understanding Full Coverage Car Insurance
Ask the Experts
To gain more insight about full coverage car insurance, WalletHub posed the following questions to a panel of experts. Click on the experts below to view their bios and answers.
1. When should drivers consider getting full coverage car insurance?
2. When should drivers consider dropping full coverage from their car insurance policy?
3. What do you think is the biggest misconception that people have about full coverage car insurance?
Ask the Experts
Adjunct Professor, Graduate School of Management, University of California - Davis
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Professor of law, College of Law, Stetson University
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ASA, CFA, Director of the Kelley Center for Insurance Innovation, EMC Associate Professor of Practice, College of Business & Public Administration, Drake University
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J.D., CFP®, Lecturer in Risk Management and Insurance, Lacy School of Business, Butler University
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Ph.D., CFA, Associate Professor, Dept. of Finance & Business Law, College of Business and Economics, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater
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Lecturer, Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago
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