South Carolina Auto Insurance Coverage

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Every state has its own mandatory insurance requirements for its residents. The insurance commissioner of each state determines the coverage needed for its drivers. There are six major areas of coverage for automobile insurance but not all are mandatory.

If you are a licensed driver in the state of South Carolina you must carry the following insurance coverage on your vehicle: Bodily Injury Protection and Personal Property Damage.

Bodily injury liability covers the injuries or death of a person if you are responsible for an accident. Personal Property damage liability covers the repair and/or replacement of your vehicle that was damaged or destroyed as a result of an accident that you were responsible for

The minimum amounts are the highest level that your insurance company will pay out for each level of coverage. For bodily injury, you are required to carry $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident and $25,000 for personal property coverage.

These are only the minimums required by the state. You may want to add additional coverage to further protect yourself and your family. If you still owe money on your vehicle, your lender will require you to carry collision coverage to protect their investment.

Personal injury protection or PIP, is coverage that although not mandatory, you should seriously consider including in your policy. It covers medical expenses for you, all relatives who live in your home, drivers who are authorized to drive your car, you and your family members if you are injured while in someone else’s car, and if you are a pedestrian hit by a vehicle.

When determining how much PIP to get you should consider how much health insurance you have and if you think it would be enough to cover any major medical expenses. You should also consider it if you drive with other passengers on a regular basis.

Comprehensive coverage protects the value and replacement of your car in the event that it is damaged as a result of anything other than an accident, for example if your car is stolen, someone breaks into it or it suffers flood damage.

Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage protects you if you get hit by someone who does not have any insurance or not enough coverage or you are the victim of a hit and run accident.

The more coverage you have the more your insurance premiums will be, depending on the deductibles you choose. But it may be in your best interest to pay the money now even though you may not need it rather than not have coverage if you do need it.