San Diego: What You Need to Know About Buying Car Insurance
Times are tough in San Diego and those tough times are affecting drivers and their ability to purchase insurance.
Even in good times, drivers often try to save as much money as they can by buying cheap insurance. We have all seen the commercials. "Call our insurance brokerage and we'll get you the best price for insurance. We'll save you money!" However, policy price is only one factor that drivers should consider when buying insurance.
A second factor, and really the reason why you buy insurance, is to protect you and your family. Car insurance does that in two ways. First, the insurance policy protects you in the event that you are at fault and cause a car accident. This is called "third party coverage" because the injured person is not part of the insurance contract between with you and your insurance company. Third party coverage by law MUST include coverage for "bodily injury" claims, i.e., claims of physical injury, and property damage claims to pay for car repairs.
Under California law, all drivers must carry car insurance with limits of at least $15,000 bodily injury coverage per person, $30,000 bodily injury coverage per accident, and $5,000 property damage. These limits have been on the books for years and have not adjusted for inflation.
As you can imagine, these limits are not sufficient to pay for all but the most minor car accidents. With the cost of medical care today, it is very easy for medical treatment alone to exceed $15,000--let alone the compensation necessary to pay for pain and suffering or for lost earnings while the injured person recovers. And any significant auto body repair can easily exceed $5,000.
Needless to say, possessing a minimum car insurance policy doesn't do anyone much good.
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