New York Car Insurance Coverages

According to New York Department of Insurance (NYDI), car insurance coverages are broke up into 3 parts:

1. No Fault Coverage
2. Liability Coverage
3. Uninsured Motorist Coverage

We will go into more detail on each category below.

No Fault Coverage/Personal Injury Protection (PIP) (Required)

Under No-Fault Coverage, insurance companies pay for your economic losses sustained in a car accident anywhere in the United States, its territories, possessions, or Canada. PIP does not cover any damages to your vehicle or for any auto body work; its sole purpose is to help recover victims of an accident as quick as possible.

Basic No-Fault Coverages Include the Following:

• Medical and rehabilitation expenses.
• 80% of lost earnings from work, up to 2,000 a month for 3 years.
• Other reasonable expenses that are a result of an auto accident can be rewarded of up to $25 a day for up to a year from the date of the accident.
• a $2,000 death benefit to the estate of the person eligible.

Note: Benefits could be denied if:

• Driving while intoxicated.
• Intentionally causing his or her injuries.
• Injured while committing a felony.
• An owner of an uninsured vehicle.
• Injured while driving or riding in a know stolen vehicle.

Liability (Required)

Under a basic liability coverage, it protects you incase you are involved in an accident that has been deemed your fault. It also protects individuals given permission to drive the vehicle. Basically, liability coverage pays for the damages that have been inflected to the other party (third parties).

Basic Liability Coverages that Should be Noted:

• Insurance company must provide you with a legal defense accident claims with out reducing your liability limits.
• If you choose to take the other party to court, your insurance company does not have support the cost.
• If your spouse is the passenger in the accident caused by the driver's negligence, your liability coverage may not cover him/her unless you purchase Supplemental Spouse Liability Insurance. However, your spouse would still be eligible for No-Fault Coverage. Check with your insurance provider to see if your liability coverage protects your spouse.

Coverage Limits According to New York Law:

• 25,000 for bodily injury and 50,000 for an injury resulting in death, sustained by any one person in any one accident.
• 50,000 for bodily injury sustained by two or more persons involved in any one accident, or 100,000 for injuries that result in death.
• 10,000 for damages to the third parties' car.

An example may be 25/50/10

Uninsured Motorists Coverage

This is a coverage that will protect you incase you are involved in an accident where a at fault party leaves the scene (Hit & Run) or he/she is uninsured. It also protects you incase your involved in an accident as a pedestrian. Uninsured Motorist Coverage can also extend to out of state by adding a little more money. Just contact your insurance provider for more information.

Note: The minimum coverage is the same as the liability coverage limits.

Rental Car Coverage

According to New York Department of Insurance's website, if you rent a car for 30 days or less and you have collision or comprehensive collision insurance coverage, you do not need to purchase Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) from the rental car company. Auto insurance providers currently provide rental car coverage without any extra charge.

Note: In the future, auto insurance companies may decide to charge for this coverage meaning that you will have the option to decline. If you are involved in an accident while renting a car, the car rental company may find you liable. Therefore, it would be prudent to purchase CDW, which could cost as much as $12 dollars a day depending on the type of car.

Optional Coverage's

Below is a quick and brief listing of car insurance Coverage's you may purchase along with the above required Coverage's Most of the below listings are covered at our Car Insurance Coverage Basics page. Some of the coverage may differ slightly, therefore, you may also want to visit New York Department of Insurance's Optional Coverage's page for a more in depth article that is relative to New York.

Below is a listing of available coverage options:

• Bodily Injury Liability
• Property Damage Liability
• Additional PIP (No-Fault) Benefits
• Supplementary Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists (SUM) Coverage
• Collision Coverage
• Comprehensive Coverage
• Medical Payments Coverage
• Accidental Death and Dismemberment Coverage
• GAP Coverage
• Spouse Liability Coverage