Submitted by: Roccoqc Mclean

While his medical bills exceeded $100,000, there was only $10,000 available for bodily injury per a person and $20,000 available for bodily injury per an accident, leaving him with over $80,000 in medical expenses in addition to the numerous other bills he was unable to pay while too injured to work.

The low cost California auto insurance program was created to ensure that low-income “good drivers” could afford car insurance. Given the recent recession-driven increase in unemployment, many California drivers have opted for this minimum liability coverage. Moreover, the state’s definition of a “good” driver includes individuals who have caused no more than one accident in the past three years, and, therefore, are quite capable of causing another collision in the years to come. In the event that one of these “good” drivers does cause an accident, his or her policy will fail to provide adequate compensation for the not-at-fault drivers involved-which was the case for the motorcyclist.

As an increasing number of the drivers we share the road with opt for low cost California auto insurance, we must protect ourselves by adding collision and uninsured motorist insurance to our policies, if we haven’t done so already. If the motorcyclist had this additional coverage, the collision insurance would have paid for the motorcycle repair or replacement costs and the uninsured motorist insurance would have covered any medical expenses that exceeded the negligent driver’s policy. Unfortunately, he did not have such coverage and incurred a tremendous amount of debt from the accident–a misfortune any of us could suffer if inadequately insured.

It is mandatory by most states to carry auto insurance. Auto insurance offers protection to the vehicle owners in the event of a sudden mishap. Many states make it mandatory, for vehicle owners to obtain liability coverage to protect other drivers in case of an accident. There are different types of auto insurance in the state of California. According the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there was one traffic death for every 11,000 Californians during 2008. In comparison, there was one traffic death for every 8,300 Americans. Furthermore, traffic deaths in California went down by 27% between 2004 and 2008.

The vast majority of vehicle passengers in California wear seat belts, and this behavior alone is reducing the number of deaths from traffic crashes. During 2008, an estimated 1,424 lives were saved by seat belts. Another 161 victims could have been saved if they had buckled up.

Despite the positive trends in road safety, poor judgment and unlawful driving continue to cause unnecessary deaths. For instance, 33% of traffic fatalities involved speeding and 30% involved an impaired driver. These behaviors often go hand in hand – if a driver is willing to break the law in one way, he’s willing to break it in multiple ways.

The risks of operating a vehicle are real, which makes choosing the right auto insurance an important decision for every driver. If you care about getting the best value for your money, shopping around and comparing quotes from three to five different insurers is essential. Too many people neglect to do this, but it’s one of the best ways to save money.

What seems like a simple auto insurance quote is actually a fairly complicated calculation.

About the Author: Insurance Guy

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