Auto insurance becomes an important part of your legal and financial responsibilities as soon as you start driving. The type of insurance and the amount of coverage you need depend on the laws of the state where you drive. In Iowa, the law requires drivers to carry proof of financial liability coverage whether the car is registered in Iowa or elsewhere.

In Iowa you’re required to carry bodily injury liability amounting to $20,000 for a single person and $40,000 in coverage for two or more people. You’re also responsible for carrying $15,000 in property damage liability.

Here’s what else you need to know about your insurance requirements in Iowa.

Iowa car insurance requirements

Iowa requires drivers to have and carry proof of financial liability insurance coverage. Liability insurance coverage protects you if you injure another party or damage their property. To meet Iowa’s definition of liability insurance, your coverage must extend to anywhere in the U.S. or Canada.2

Bodily injury coverage

Bodily injury coverage kicks in if you or another driver injures or kills someone while driving your car. Iowa law requires that you have at least $20,000 for the injury or death of one person in one car accident and at least $40,000 for the injuries or deaths of two or more people in one accident.3

If, for example, you rear-end the car in front of you at a red light and injure the other driver, the minimum liability insurance would cover up to $20,000 of expenses resulting from their injury. Liability insurance wouldn’t cover your own injuries.

If the driver and their passenger were both injured, your minimum liability insurance would cover up to $40,000 in expenses resulting from their injuries, even if those expenses totaled $50,000. In this case, you’d have to pay the additional $10,000 out of pocket.

Property damage coverage

Property damage liability coverage reimburses other people when you damage or destroy their property while driving. This property might include their car, items inside the car, a fence, a building, or another object.

You’ll need at least $15,000 in property damage coverage per accident to drive legally in Iowa. Note that property damage coverage only reimburses damage to other people’s property. It doesn’t cover damage to your car or to the property in your car.

To see how this works in practice, say you lose control of your car and crash into a homeowner’s fence. With minimum coverage, your insurance would pay up to $15,000 toward the damages.

Iowa Automobile Insurance Plan

Do you need more than state-minimum coverage in Iowa?

Liability-only insurance covers you when you cause an injury or damage property while you’re driving, but it doesn’t cover your own damages. You need full coverage for that. And the state-minimum liability might not provide enough protection to compensate the other party’s medical bills and other damages. That’s why insurance agents often recommend purchasing more than minimum coverage.

Whether you should take that advice depends on your situation. If you’re financing a car, your lender probably requires you to have full coverage, which includes collision coverage for crashes with another vehicle and comprehensive coverage for other types of mishaps.

The cost of liability-only car insurance in Iowa

With liability-only premiums averaging $55 per month, Iowa has the sixth-lowest average premiums in the U.S. But considering how important it is to protect your assets by reimbursing other parties for injuries or property damage you cause, it’s important to shop around for the best coverage as well as the best price.

The following average quotes demonstrate how variable auto insurance rates can be in Iowa.

The cost of full-coverage car insurance in Iowa

Compared to other states, Iowa doesn’t rank as cheap for full coverage as it does for liability only. Its $109 average monthly full-coverage premium is the 15th lowest. However, it pays to repair or replace your own vehicle if you hit another car or a deer or if your car is stolen, vandalized, or suffers damage from a fire or fallen tree. That can add up to tens of thousands of dollars in additional coverage.

Here’s a sampling of quotes you might encounter for full coverage in Iowa.

Penalties for driving without proof of insurance in Iowa

Driving without proof of insurance is a serious violation in Iowa, and the consequences can be costly. According to the Iowa Code, if an officer pulls you over and finds you don’t have proof of insurance, the officer can:

• Issue a warning: You may receive a warning, in which case, you should purchase a policy quickly to avoid a worse outcome later on.

• Issue a citation: If you receive a citation, you may drive the vehicle for up to 48 hours for the purpose of removing it from the road.

• Issue a citation and remove the vehicle’s license plates and registration card: In this case, you’d need to have the vehicle towed home.

• Issue a citation, remove the vehicle’s license plates and registration, and impound the vehicle: The vehicle stays impounded until the owner shows proof of insurance and pays any fines they’ve incurred.

Optional car insurance coverages to consider

Minimum liability insurance might not provide all the protection you need. However, you can add other coverages to round out your auto insurance policy, including: