I’m from Montana and just bought a new car. What do I need to do next?

Desiree

Billings, MT

Before acquiring car insurance, it is important to know that every state has its own insurance laws. Every state demands that its motorist have financial accountability in case they cause vehicular accidents.

The State of Montana requires its motorists to have minimum liability coverage. This insurance covers $25 thousand in medical expenses for a single car occupant, and pays up to a total of $50 thousand in medical costs for all occupants in the car. While for property damage, an amount up to $10 thousand is covered by the car insurance.

Car insurers cover repairs for damages to public properties or the other motorist’s car. Since medical and repairs cost are steadily rising, minimum liability coverage may not be enough. And since the one at fault will shoulder all the expenses to repairs done to his or her own car, it would be smart to carry collision coverage. This section in your policy will assist in paying for your car repairs.

While car insurance is mandatory in all states, some motorists drive without any coverage at all. For this reason, uninsured motorist insurance is also very advisable. This will cover for your medical costs following an accident if an uninsured driver causes it.

Shop around. Get quotes from many car insurance companies. It is best to talk with an agent who represents various companies to save time. You can also visit the websites of car insurance companies in Montana. Knowing all your options will prove to be useful financially.

If you have decided on a company, always remember to deal with a legitimate local agent. Ask for a proof of license. Do not make cash payments. Either pay by check or money order made out to the company. Do not forget to ask for a copy of the policy within a reasonable amount of time from purchase. Read your policy carefully especially the fine print. Knowing the coverage type and its limitations is very important.

I’m planning to buy a new car here in Louisiana. Will my collision and comprehensive insurance rates be affected by the model of my car?

Paula Anne

New Orleans, LA

Before you buy a car or before you buy auto insurance, try to get more information because insurance rates are definitely affected by the model of the car that you’re driving. Driving a high performance car or driving a sports car means you will to pay more for auto insurance. But this fact is not the general rule in determining insurance rates for your car. As a matter of fact, most auto insurance companies calculate your collision and comprehensive premiums by studying the car’s loss history, whether the model gets stolen very often, and the costs of its repair after an incident. Nowadays, insurers charge higher premiums to sports utility vehicles or SUVs due to recent tests that show that SUVs cause more damage in accidents than other passenger vehicles.

Auto insurance companies often utilize actuarial companies that give ratings of vehicles. Certain factors are used to determine the comprehensive and collision coverage costs in order to minimize the insurance company’s risks. Then, these actuarial companies assign a risk number to a car which is then used by the auto insurance company to calculate their policy rates. However, these risk numbers are not available to the public.

But if you want to know how much it will really cost you, you can contact an auto insurance company before you purchase a vehicle. That way, you can find out first how much you should pay for an auto insurance of a BMW or a Ford pick-up truck.

Just remember, it is better to look around for more information before jumping into conclusions or making decisions about buying a car or getting auto insurance.

I am a flight stewardess, and I travel a lot because of the nature of my work. So, I really don’t use my car that much, and I just leave it in Naperville, Illinois, where I actually live. When I am away for long periods of time, can I suspend my auto insurance?

Gayle

Naperville, IL

The answer to your question is not really that easy. You will have to take a lot of things into consideration.

When you we say automobile insurance, it does not necessarily mean that we are having ourselves and our vehicle protected from damages only when driving. The automotive insurance coverages that we may need if we constantly use our car are collision coverage, the basic liability coverage required by most states, uninsured and underinsured (UM/UIM) motorist coverage, and the coverage for medical payments.

But what if your car just stays at home and gets damaged for numerous reasons, like vandalism or theft or fire? Comprehensive coverage is the one that is going to pay for these kind of damages which do not necessarily involve a collision. I think, what you can do is suspend just a part of your whole automobile insurance policy and not cancel it entirely.

Another matter that you need to be aware of is that all states in this country require vehicle drivers to carry a certain amount of insurance coverage. Most motorists avail of the basic liability coverage. If you are to suspend your auto insurance policy, they might also cancel your registration. If this happens, when you get back, you will be faced with all the troubles of having your car registered and reinstating your automobile insurance.

In any case, you will still have to correspond with your auto insurance carrier to be really sure about this. If you are 100% sure that your car is not in danger of getting damaged or stolen there in  Illinois, while you are away, you might want to suspend just a part of your coverage. But never just stop paying your premium without talking to your auto insurance company because this will just give you more trouble.

Will I be able to keep my coverage while I am upgrading my high performance car’s security?

Anne

Sorry, but it doesn’t work that way.

Car insurance companies often have very strict rules about the prices a secure car will get you, and if you want to get good rates on your collision coverage, then you need to have safety features installed. However, if you don’t, you can still get the collision coverage, but it will jut cost more. The same thing does not go with high performance car insurance coverage. While you can get your car insurance collision coverage just as easily, the comprehensive coverage is not the same way. Many car insurance companies will not even think about covering you with comprehensive until you have the right safety mechanisms on your car to protect against theft, and you cannot put this off. No features, no coverage, it doesn’t matter if you are installing them right now.

The types of alarms that the car insurance companies require are called active disabling alarms. While you can get something with bells and whistles, what they want is for you to have something that shuts down an integral part of the vehicle so that the thief is not able to start it even with his techniques. The device also needs to be constantly active, not activated by you.

Cheers,

Fashun Guadarrama.