[SAEalumnus]

Originally posted by texas*princess
Two words: Judge Judy!

Before this I didn't even know uninsured motorist insurance even existed. is that included in full coverage?

"Full coverage" is a dubious term used by insurance agents to sell policies. Or at least that's my opinion of the situation.

The minimum coverages and limits required by California's financial responsibility law are the following:

BI: $15,000/$30,000
PD: $5,000

This means if you're at fault for damage to any physical property (someone else's car, their house, a fence, or whatever else you drove into), you're required to be covered for up to at least $5,000 per incident. Incidentally, in addition to cost of repair to someone else's car if you're at fault, you also owe for reasonable rental expenses (or other similar 'Loss of Use' compensation) which also falls under your PD coverage.

If you're only carrying the minimum amount on your policy, you're kidding yourself and will be in deep poop if you end up at fault for a collision, especially if the total damages exceeds that amount, which really isn't hard to do. I would personally recommend an absolute minimum PD limit of $25k per accident, but $50k is better. Of course, the more assets you have to protect, the higher the limits you should carry, and in some cases a personal umbrella policy (PUP policy) wouldn't hurt either.

The two dollar figures for Bodily Injury represent the maximum amount your insurance company will pay to any one person (the smaller figure), and the maximum amount they will pay for any one accident (the larger figure) for injury claims. Most injury claims are what are referred to as 'soft tissue,' meaning general stiffness and soreness to muscles, or headaches, but no broken bones and no lacerations or any other serious or fatal injuries. If you're at fault and the other party's injuries (if any) are limited to soft tissue only, then even minimal limits are generally fine provided you haven't injured a whole car full of people (you're fine for one or two injured people is about it). If you put someone in the hospital or worse and you have minimal limits, again you're in deep poop. Surprisingly, the additional premium required to increase your limits from minimal to mid-range or higher is generally not that much.

California law requires that you have coverage to account for damages to other people for which you may be responsible, but does not require you to carry coverage for your own vehicle or your own injuries. Any such coverages for those purposes are entirely optional and require additional amounts in your premium.

Optional coverages include: Collision, Comprehensive ("Comp"), Rental Reimbursement, Towing and Labor, Additional Equipment, Medical Payments ("Med Pay" / regular or excess), Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury (UMBI), and Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (UMPD). These coverages are defined and used as follows:

Collision:
* Is a 'no-fault' coverage; applies regardless of liability.
* Allows your insurance company to repair your vehicle, or make settlment in lieu of repairs if your vehicle is a total loss, in the case where your vehicle is involved in a collision with another vehicle (or pedestrian, bicyclist, fixed object, etc.).
* Includes a deductible which in most cases you must pay regardless of whether or not you are at fault and whether or not you feel like or can afford to pay it. (Hint: If you can't afford the insurance, you can't afford the car.)
* The higher the deductible you choose for yourself (the more money you're willing to pay personally to the body shop), the less this coverage will cost you on your premium, and vice versa.

Comprehensive:
* Is a 'no-fault' coverage; applies regardless of liability.
* Covers damage to your vehicle not caused by a collision. Examples include: vandalism, theft, fire, falling objects, and the like.
* Also includes a deductible which works the same way as a Collision deductible.

Rental Reimbursement:
* Is a 'no-fault' coverage; applies regardless of liability.
* Allows your insurance company to pay a car rental agency (or reimburse you) for rental expenses up to the amount stated on your declarations page (usually around $25 per day) for up to a certain period of time (typically either when repairs to your vehicle are completed, or when settlement is offered to you in case of a total loss, or when you've reached the policy maximum of typically 24-30 days).
* The additional premium required for this coverage is generally rediculously small and will save you a huge headache later.

Towing and Labor:
* Is a 'no-fault' coverage; applies regardless of liability.
* Think "roadside assistance."

Additional Equipment:
* Is a 'no-fault' coverage; applies regardless of liability.
* This covers aftermarket equipment installed on or in your vehicle.
* Be prepared to fully document your claim if you intend to pursue one (i.e. have receipts, if not pictures also).

Med Pay:
* Is a 'no-fault' coverage; applies regardless of liability.
* Covers medical and funeral expenses up to the maximum amount per person listed on your declarations page.
* Applies to occupants of your vehicle (you as the driver, plus any passengers, whether or not they are related to you).
* Regular Med Pay means bills are paid as they are submitted to your insurance company.
* Excess Med Pay requires a smaller premium, but more work on your part because 'excess' means the coverage is secondary to any and all collectible primary health insurance you may have. You would first have to submit the bills to your primary health carrier (Blue Cross, Kaiser, whoever), then would have to get a letter (Explanation of Benefits, or EOB) from them stating what bills they can't or won't pay for you and then submit that letter along with the bills to your auto insurance company for review.

UMBI:
* Is a 'fault' coverage; you're only entitled to coverage to the extent to which you are not at fault for the accident.
* Requires physical contact with another motor vehicle (i.e. does not apply in the case where yours is the only involved vehicle).
* Applies even in cases of hit and run where no ID of the other party is available.
* Works the same way as BI coverage with two dollar limits (max per person, max per accident) for injuries. Basically, if the person at fault does have insurance and you're injured, you'd pursue your injury claim through the other person's BI coverage. If the other person has no insurance or flees the scene, then you pursue the claim through your own UMBI coverage.
* Can also result in an Underinsured Motorist (UIMBI) claim in the case where the person at fault does have insurance, just not enough. For example, let's say the other person is at fault and only has 15/30 BI limits. For any one person (like you), the other party's insurance can only pay up to the maximum of $15k. Now let's suppose your own UMBI limits are higher then 15/30 and your injury claim exceeds the $15k payable under the other party's coverage. The difference between the two is coverable under your UMBI coverage as a UIMBI claim. If your UMBI limits are 25/50, then you could collect the $15k from the other party's coverage, and pursue up to an additional $10k through your own ($25k - $15k) UMBI coverage as a UIM claim. Note that this only works if your UMBI limits are higher than the other party's BI limits. If your limits are equal to or less than the other party's BI limits, then you can't claim UIMBI through your own insurance.

UMPD:
* Requires physical contact with another motor vehicle (i.e. does not apply in the case where yours is the only involved vehicle).
* Generally does not apply in cases of hit and run with no ID on the other party. This is why it's very important to get a license plate number of all of the vehicles involved in the collision.
* If you also carry Collision on your policy, then UMPD will typically serve to waive your deductible, or to allow your insurance company to reimburse your deductible directly back to you if you've already paid it. In this case UMPD CDW (Collision Deductible Waiver) is typically a 'no-fault' coverage; applies regardless of liability.
* If you do not carry Collision, then UMPD will typically provide you with coverage up to the maximum amount listed on your declarations page. In this case UMPD is typically a 'fault' coverage; you're only entitled to coverage to the extent to which you are not at fault for the accident.

Each and all of these optional coverages must be specifically requested by you to be added to your policy and most/each will involve an additional premium. This is why the term "full coverage" is generally misleading, because you might have Comp, Collision, UMBI, and UMPD, but that doesn't necessarily mean you've got Med Pay or Rental unless you requested those as well. It's better to check your declarations page (it's sent to you every time you renew your policy) before you're involved in an accident to see exactly what coverages and limits you do and don't have. You can always add or change coverages any time you like, but it's never retroactive.