What is Auto Insurance?

Auto insurance protects you against financial loss if you have an accident. It is a contract between you and the insurance company. You agree to pay the premium and the insurance company agrees to pay your losses as defined in your policy.

Auto insurance provides property, liability and medical coverage:

• Property coverage pays for damage to or theft of your car.
• Liability coverage pays for your legal responsibility to others for bodily injury or property damage.
• Medical coverage pays for the cost of treating injuries, rehabilitation and sometimes lost wages and funeral expenses.

An auto insurance policy is comprised of six different kinds of coverage. Most states require you to buy some, but not all, of these coverages. If you’re financing a car, your lender may also have requirements.

Most auto policies are for six months or a year. Your insurance company should notify you by mail when it’s time to renew the policy and to pay your premium.

Dallas Auto Insurance – State Requirements for Texas

Texas law requires people who drive in Texas to pay for the accidents they cause. Most drivers do this by buying automobile liability insurance. Liability insurance pays to repair or replace the other driver’s car and pays other people’s medical expenses when you are at fault in an accident.

If you buy insurance to meet the state’s financial responsibility law, you must purchase at least the minimum amount. The current minimum liability limits are $30,000 for each injured person, up to a total of $60,000 per accident, and $25,000 for property damage per accident. This basic coverage is called 30/60/25 coverage.

Because of car prices and the high cost of medical care, the minimum amounts might not be enough to pay all of the other driver’s costs if you’re in an accident. Other drivers could sue you to collect the difference. Consider purchasing more than the basic limits to protect yourself financially.

Liability insurance does not pay to repair or replace your car or to treat your injuries. Consider purchasing other types of coverage – such as medical payments, collision, and comprehensive – to pay for these expenses.

Understanding Rates

Texas law requires insurance rates to be reasonable, adequate, not discriminatory, and not excessive to the risks for which they apply. Auto insurance companies in Texas set their own rates and file them with TDI for review. Companies do not have to receive prior approval before using their rates. However, TDI can order a company to make refunds if it determines that a company’s filed rates are excessive.

Factors that Affect Your Premium

Companies use a process called underwriting to decide whether to sell you a policy and what rate to charge you.  Companies must file their underwriting guidelines with TDI and update them each time they make a change. The criteria companies typically use to establish premiums include:

• Your age and, for younger drivers, your marital status. Male drivers under 25 and unmarried women under 21 have the highest rates. Drivers over 50 may get discounts.
• Your driving record and claims history. A good driving record can save you money.
• Where you keep your car. Because drivers in urban areas have more accidents and auto thefts, their rates are typically higher than the rates for drivers in rural areas.
• Your car’s type. Collision and comprehensive rates are highest for luxury, high-performance, and sports cars. Rates may also be higher for cars that damage easily or cost more to repair.
• Your car’s primary use. Rates for cars driven solely for pleasure are lower than rates for cars driven to and from work or used for business.
• Your credit score. Some companies will use your credit score to decide if they want to sell you a policy and what they’ll charge.
• Whether you drove uninsured in Texas. Companies may charge more if you drove uninsured in Texas for more than 30 days in the 12 months before you applied for insurance. If you didn’t, a company cannot charge you more for liability coverage because of your prior lack of coverage.

Discounts

Discounts can help you save money on your premium. Discounts vary by company. The following is a list of some of the ways you could receive a discount:

• defensive driving courses
• driver education courses for young drivers
• students with good grades
• parent or family whose young driver is away at school without a car
• two or more cars on a policy
• policy renewal with good claims and driving records
• a concurrent homeowners policy.

Your might also qualify for a discount if your car has:

• airbags and automatic seatbelts
• automatic daytime running lights
• antilock brakes
• antitheft devices.

(Source: TDI.Texas.gov)

About La Familia Insurance

La Familia Insurance is a fast growing company that is dedicated to serving all of the insurance needs of its customers.  We make sure that our offices are conveniently located and that all our employees offer the very best service.  It is our promise to ensure that our customers have a consistently excellent experience, whether it is making a payment or starting a new policy.  We promise to always be friendly, cheerful, and make you feel like a member of our family.

We want to make the insurance buying experience as simple and easy as possible, and make sure that our customers feel confident knowing that they are protected. So call us today for Dallas Auto Insurance quote at 888.751.7511.