Full-coverage car insurance is generally a combination of policies and typically includes collision, comprehensive, liability, and medical payments insurance. Technically, full-coverage car insurance is optional. But if you lease or finance your car, you’ll likely have to carry full coverage.
Despite the term “full coverage,” a full-coverage car insurance policy doesn’t provide unlimited protection. However, full-coverage policies provide significantly more protection than liability-only policies.
“Full-coverage insurance” isn’t an official auto insurance term, but it typically includes:
Depending on your insurer and your state’s insurance requirements, full coverage may also include:
Full coverage typically includes liability insurance to pay for expenses related to other drivers, their cars, and their passengers. Collision and comprehensive coverages are also included and cover your vehicle.
Full-coverage policies can vary based on your insurer, so it’s best to check with an insurance agent if you’re confused about what your insurance covers. The table below shows the major differences between the most common types of auto insurance.
Despite its name, full-coverage insurance doesn’t cover every situation. Most car insurance companies sell optional policies, also called endorsements, which fill in coverage gaps, including the following:
Roadside assistance covers the cost of basic roadside car repairs and towing.
Accident forgiveness waives your first minor at-fault accident and prevents your premium from increasing after a crash. Generally, you’ll need to have a clean driving record for at least three years to qualify for this coverage.
Gap insurance covers the difference between what you owe on your car loan and your car’s diminished value if you total your vehicle.
Rental reimbursement helps cover the cost of a rental car while your vehicle is in the shop for repairs.
Liability insurance includes two parts — bodily injury liability coverage and property damage liability coverage.[1] It only applies when you cause an accident and the other driver suffers losses.
In the case of an at-fault accident, the bodily injury liability portion of your policy compensates the other driver for any medical expenses. The property damage liability portion pays for their car repairs. Liability insurance also covers your legal fees if another driver sues you.
In most states, personal liability insurance is a legal requirement. The minimum coverage limits for liability insurance are different in every state, but there’s no guarantee that a minimum-coverage policy will cover the full cost of the damages after an accident.
Uninsured motorist insurance generally includes three types of protection: uninsured motorist bodily injury (UMBI), uninsured motorist property damage (UMPD), and underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage. UIM pays the difference between your repair costs and the underinsured driver’s liability limits.
UMBI pays your medical bills, lost wages, or funeral expenses if an uninsured driver causes an accident that injures you or your passengers. UMBI also applies to hit-and-runs and if an uninsured driver injures you as a pedestrian or cyclist. UMPD pays for property damage caused by an uninsured driver if you don’t have collision insurance.
Collision insurance pays for your vehicle’s repairs after an accident you’re responsible for. It also covers single-car crashes and rollovers. Collision insurance is not legally required, but lenders typically require it if you lease or finance your car. With most policies, the coverage limit of a collision insurance policy is the actual cash value (ACV) of your vehicle, which is the original cost of your vehicle minus depreciation.
Depreciation accounts for normal wear and tear, mileage, age, and more.
Comprehensive coverage pays for your vehicle’s repairs when the car is damaged in a non-collision event.[1] It’s an optional policy, but it’s often required for drivers who lease or have an auto loan.
Comprehensive insurance covers a variety of potential losses, including:
Vandalism
Falling objects
Accidents with animals
Weather-related damage
Fires
Floods
Like collision insurance, the policy limit for comprehensive insurance is usually the ACV of your vehicle. If you file a claim, you’ll generally pay a deductible before your insurer covers the damages, up to the policy limit.[2]
The national average for full-coverage insurance is $179, but rates can vary widely. Insurance companies calculate the likelihood you’ll file a claim based on a number of factors, including your state, accident history, age, driving record, credit history, and car make and model.
Some companies offer cheaper full-coverage car insurance than others. However, the most affordable policy for you will depend on your unique driver profile. The Insurance Information Institute recommends drivers compare quotes from at least three different insurers, which can help you find the best deal.
Currently, these insurance companies provide the most affordable quotes for full coverage:
Liability coverage helps pay for accident-related damages, from car repairs to medical bills, for the other driver and their passengers. All states except Virginia and New Hampshire require liability insurance, and recent legislation changes mean Virginia drivers must carry coverage after July 1, 2024. Each state has its own minimum liability requirements.
Unlike liability insurance, states don’t mandate full coverage. You may need to buy it if you finance or lease your vehicle and your lender requires it. Full-coverage insurance generally includes collision and comprehensive coverages, which pay for damages to your car.
Liability-only insurance provides less financial protection for you, your vehicle, and your passengers, so it’s significantly cheaper than full coverage. Local laws, accident rates, and the risk of natural disasters can influence insurance rates, so the cost of liability and full-coverage insurance varies by state.
Although full-coverage insurance isn’t legally required, it’s a good investment for many drivers.
If you lease or finance your vehicle, the lienholder — like an auto loan company — might require full-coverage car insurance. This protects your lender from financial loss if something happens to your vehicle while you still owe money on it.
Full-coverage auto insurance can also be beneficial if you drive a high-value car. Newer cars and luxury models are often expensive to fix, and without physical damage coverage, you would have to pay for the repairs (or a new car) out of pocket in the event of a claim.6
Full coverage can provide financial protection from incidents liability-only insurance won’t cover, including:
Vehicle damage from driving over a ditch or pothole
Hailstorms, floods, or fires damage your vehicle
You hit a deer or other animal
A hit-and-run damages your car
You collide with a fence, pole, guardrail, or other object
Your vehicle is stolen or vandalized
Not every driver needs full coverage. If you could repair or replace your vehicle for less than it would cost to add collision and comprehensive coverage, it might make more sense to stick with a liability-only policy.
If you have an older vehicle worth very little money, full-coverage insurance could cost more annually than the value of your car. You might also skip full coverage if you keep your car in storage most of the time.
Now that you understand full-coverage insurance, you can learn how to purchase a policy. Before you buy a full-coverage insurance policy, however, it’s important to compare a few different insurance companies. Here are the general steps you should follow to buy full-coverage car insurance:7
Research insurance companies. Every car insurance company offers something different, whether it’s more discounts, better coverage options, or lower rates. Research and compare companies to see which ones meet your needs.
Choose your coverage limits. Think about how much coverage you want for policies like liability insurance and MedPay. You also need to decide what deductible you can comfortably afford.
Consider endorsements. Decide if you want to add endorsements to your policy, like accident forgiveness or gap insurance. Make sure you choose an insurance company that offers the policies you want.
Compare quotes. Next, you can start getting quotes on individual insurer websites or using a quote-comparison platform. With a quote-comparison platform, you can get matched with quotes from many different insurance companies based on a single application.
Purchase a policy. After you’ve compared quotes and found the best match for you, it’s time to purchase your policy. Once the initial premium is paid, your coverage will take effect. Don’t forget to download or print your insurance ID cards, which you’ll need to keep in your vehicle.
Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about full-coverage car insurance.
You may consider dropping collision or comprehensive insurance for an older car if it’s worth less than 10 times your premium.7 If you still have a loan on the car, the lender may require these coverages, so check with the lender to ensure you still have the required coverage.
If you lease a car, comprehensive and collision insurance are usually required to protect the car owner’s investment — in this case, the bank, dealership, or leasing company that owns the car.8
While comprehensive and collision coverages are separate add-ons to car insurance policies, some insurers may bundle the two coverage options under one endorsement. If you want to buy one without the other, compare car insurance companies that offer them separately.
Sometimes it is. In no-fault states where personal injury protection isn’t required, it’s a coverage that drivers can add to their insurance policies to increase their protection in the case of an accident.
Sometimes it is. In states where UI/UM coverage isn’t required, drivers can add it to their policy to help protect themselves if they’re in an accident with a driver who is uninsured or doesn’t have high enough limits to cover expenses.
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At Insurify, our goal is to help customers compare insurance products and find the best policy for them. We strive to provide open, honest, and unbiased information about the insurance products and services we review. Our hard-working team of data analysts, insurance experts, insurance agents, editors and writers, has put in thousands of hours of research to create the content found on our site.
We do receive compensation when a sale or referral occurs from many of the insurance providers and marketing partners on our site. That may impact which products we display and where they appear on our site. But it does not influence our meticulously researched editorial content, what we write about, or any reviews or recommendations we may make. We do not guarantee favorable reviews or any coverage at all in exchange for compensation.
Coverage Type  | What It Covers | Is It Required? | Who It’s Good For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodily injury liability | After an at-fault accident, this policy pays for the other driver’s medical expenses if they get injured. | Yes, in most states | All drivers |
| Property damage liability | After an at-fault accident, this policy pays for the other driver’s vehicle repairs. | Yes, in most states | All drivers |
| Uninsured/underinsured motorist | This policy provides extra coverage for your losses if you get into an accident with an uninsured motorist or a driver with limited insurance coverage. | Yes, in some states | All drivers |
| Medical payments | Pays for your and your passengers’ medical bills after a collision, no matter which driver was at fault. | Yes, in some states | Drivers without health insurance or with limited health insurance coverage and drivers who can’t afford their medical expenses after an accident |
| Collision | Pays to repair or replace your vehicle after a covered accident, up to your car’s ACV. | No | Drivers who lease or finance their vehicles and drivers with newer vehicles |
| Comprehensive | Pays to repair or replace your vehicle after a covered non-collision claim, up to your car’s ACV. | No | Drivers who lease or finance their vehicles and drivers with newer vehicles |
State | Full Coverage | Liability Only |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $130 | $65 |
| Alaska | $123 | $68 |
| Arizona | $157 | $93 |
| Arkansas | $160 | $84 |
| California | $203 | $93 |
| Colorado | $198 | $94 |
| Connecticut | $258 | $174 |
| Delaware | $235 | $161 |
| Florida | $206 | $155 |
| Georgia | $249 | $161 |
| Hawaii | $131 | $58 |
| Idaho | $102 | $62 |
| Illinois | $149 | $80 |
| Indiana | $128 | $69 |
| Iowa | $102 | $53 |
| Kansas | $147 | $77 |
| Kentucky | $185 | $117 |
| Louisiana | $194 | $107 |
| Maine | $145 | $81 |
| Maryland | $281 | $190 |
| Massachusetts | $145 | $101 |
| Michigan | $211 | $138 |
| Minnesota | $163 | $90 |
| Mississippi | $137 | $67 |
| Missouri | $174 | $91 |
| Montana | $143 | $66 |
| Nebraska | $137 | $71 |
| Nevada | $240 | $157 |
| New Hampshire | $85 | $54 |
| New Jersey | $252 | $171 |
| New Mexico | $137 | $68 |
| New York | $182 | $174 |
| North Carolina | $89 | $63 |
| North Dakota | $114 | $67 |
| Ohio | $119 | $70 |
| Oklahoma | $168 | $84 |
| Oregon | $141 | $91 |
| Pennsylvania | $155 | $91 |
| Rhode Island | $215 | $146 |
| South Carolina | $232 | $164 |
| South Dakota | $136 | $59 |
| Tennessee | $133 | $68 |
| Texas | $214 | $121 |
| Utah | $143 | $98 |
| Vermont | $142 | $64 |
| Virginia | $178 | $111 |
| Washington | $165 | $93 |
| Washington, D.C. | $308 | $218 |
| West Virginia | $149 | $82 |
| Wisconsin | $114 | $60 |
| Wyoming | $101 | $55 |
Over 3 years of experience producing content on insurance and personal finance.
Key architect of Insurify's quality score.
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