Pennsylvania car insurance is always important. If you own a vehicle in Pennsylvania at all, it is so important to know general car insurance information, the specific car insurance requirements you might need, and where to get started.
Insurance, in its basic definition, is a contract between you and an insurance company that protects you against financial loss if an accident occurs. When it comes to cars, those just might happen. So stay safe: make sure you are always covered. Every vehicle registered in the state of Pennsylvania must have minimum amounts of liability insurance coverage.
There are definitely some stiff penalties if you go without! If the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (also called PennDOT) finds that you’ve driven your vehicle without insurance, your license will be suspended for three months. Your car’s license plate, driver’s license, registration sticker all must be given up to PennDOT in order to serve the suspension. Restoration fees and proof of insurance have to be submitted before having driving or registration privileges can be returned to you.
Auto insurance is mandatory in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, so drivers absolutely must purchase and maintain it before they can legally drive in the state. A lapse in that insurance coverage may mean a suspension of your vehicle registration privileges for at least three months.
Also, Pennsylvania is one of the few states operating under a No Fault car insurance agreement. Currently, only about a dozen states operate under No Fault car insurance laws, but Pennsylvania is one of those few. Practically, it means that each party’s respective car insurance company will pay for damages to the respective vehicles, no matter who was at fault for the accident.
Pennsylvania has any number of car insurance companies in addition to big brands like Allstate, Progressive, and Geico. They might focus on just the Pennsylvania market, or extend to other bigger East Coast markets. Finding one of these car insurers might be easy for you, but be sure to step back and compare as many as you can.
The state ranks 26 out of 50 for the overall cost of car insurance. According to Quadrant Information Services, car insurance rates in Pennsylvania average right below the national average. Annually, they were $1,420.78 in 2010. They were $1,774.41 in California and $2,098.29 in Michigan, just to compare. Pennsylvania is relatively low.
An insurance company will ask you a series of questions before deciding whether to take you on as a policyholder. This process is known as underwriting. Legally, an insurance company cannot discriminate against you — unfairly focusing on things like race, age, religion, ethnic origin, nationality, sex, occupation, place of residence, family size, or marital status. They can use credit information at the outset, but not for renewal.
Instead, they will take into consideration something like the following… what’s the age and type of the vehicle? where is it usually garaged overnight? Does it have safety features, and how many? What’s the mileage in a year? What is the driving history of each of the drivers? They will then come back to you with an appropriate rate.
You agree to pay the premium, and the company will agree to pay for certain other expenses that the policy defines. Pennsylvania requires both “liability coverage” and “first party coverage” in all policies. Car insurance coverages that are not mandatory include under-insured motorist coverage (UIM), uninsured motorist coverage (UM), comprehensive coverage, and collision coverage.
It is critical to be familiar with all your coverage options and not just the minimum that is required by law. Certain benefits that are covered by all Pennsylvania auto insurance companies include medical benefits, bodily injury liability, and/or property damage liability. Some companies even offer a single combination of bodily injury liability and property damage liability. You might be able, in some situations, to lower your premiums by adjusting one of these non-mandatory coverages, but it never means that you should go entirely without them.
Start a car insurance comparison search online, which can gather information for you about deductibles, types of coverage, premiums, policy limits, and all sorts of other factors that can make car insurance policies unique. This will help you sort out all the details and arrive at a great solution. Get started with Pennsylvania car insurance today.
Related posts: