Auto Insurance: The Basics

Learn More about this Quiz

If you own a car, chances are you're required to have car insurance. Almost every state requires you to have auto insurance in order to drive a car. The only exceptions are New Hampshire and Virginia. What you may not have realized is auto insurance isn't just one type of insurance. In fact, you usually buy multiple types of auto insurance with one auto insurance policy. Each state has their mandated minimum coverage requirements for which types of auto insurance they require and how much of each type of insurance you have to carry. You can contact a local auto insurance agent to find out what your state requires or look up your state's requirements here. While you're required to carry the minimum, many times it makes sense to carry more than the minimum required to protect yourself and your finances should you get in a bad auto accident. In a bad accident, it isn't uncommon for medical bills to exceed the low minimum some states set, such as $10,000. Similarly, it's easy to cause more than the minimum amount of property damage. It isn't uncommon to see cars worth $50,000 to $100,000 driving on the road. If you total one of these cars, $10,000 in property damage liability coverage won't nearly cover what you'll owe and you'll have to pay for the difference out of pocket. In this quiz, you'll learn a bit about the different types of auto insurance and what each type covers. You'll also learn about some common auto insurance extras that insurance companies try to sell in addition to the main auto insurance types. Then, you'll be able to determine which insurance options are worth the cost to you and how much of each type of insurance you should carry to protect yourself and your finances.