What Are the Minimum Car Insurance Requirements in Alabama?
Driving through Alabama is an experience like nothing else. Maybe you’ll be putting your feet in the sand over in Orange Beach. Or maybe you’ll end up touring a historic football city like Tuscaloosa or Auburn.
Wherever you go, you’re going to need a car to get there, which means you need the right level of car insurance coverage. As someone living in Alabama, though, do you know what the right level of coverage is?
Why Is Car Insurance So Important?
One simple reason is that many cities in Alabama do not have a reliable public transit system, which means you pretty much need a car to get from Point A to Point B, even if you never leave the city where you live.
If you drive in Alabama, you need the minimum car insurance. If you drive without any car insurance coverage, you may have to pay stiff penalties, lose your license, and even spend time in jail. If you don’t have any car insurance and cause an accident, you will also have to pay for any damages you cause.
Minimum Car Insurance Requirements: Alabama
Alabama drivers love to ask how much car insurance they should have. While the exact recommended level of coverage changes from person to person, every driver in the state must have the minimum car insurance required.
So, what are the minimum car insurance requirements in Alabama? At a minimum, you must have liability car insurance coverage in the following amounts:
- $25,000 bodily injury liability per person
- $50,000 maximum for all bodily injuries to be paid for any one accident
- $25,000 maximum for property damage per accident
The idea here is simple: Every driver in the state is legally required to have this minimum level of coverage or higher. So that means whoever is at fault for a car accident should be able to pay for the damage without putting themselves or the other driver into serious debt.
Different Kinds of Car Insurance
In addition to liability insurance, one of the other types of coverage is collision insurance. This type of coverage helps pay for repairs to your car regardless of whether you were at fault or not. This is important because if you cause an accident and only have liability insurance, you may have no way of repairing your car.
The other main type of car insurance is comprehensive coverage. This helps protect your car from things like theft, vandalism, and extreme weather events. In other words, comprehensive coverage is the best way to protect your car when it is not moving.
Why You Need More Than Minimum Car Insurance in Alabama
One thing Alabama drivers have in common with drivers throughout the country is that most of them are paying too much money for their car insurance. To save money on your car insurance, you might be tempted to get only the minimum car insurance required by Alabama. But take it from us: Minimal car insurance is never enough!
Why is that? We already covered one of the big reasons, which is that liability car insurance only pays out when you are at fault, and it only pays to cover damage that you caused. So if you were at fault in an accident, liability car insurance would do nothing to take care of your own repair bills and medical bills.
Additionally, someone else’s liability coverage may not be enough to repair your car, or they may (illegally) be driving without any insurance coverage. If the other person doesn’t have enough coverage, you may be left holding the bill even if they were at fault unless you have collision coverage.
Finally, liability insurance does nothing to protect your car against things like theft or vandalism. Comprehensive insurance can protect against these things while also providing protection against hurricanes and tornadoes (which Alabama gets a lot of) and even falling objects (like the tree limbs that hurricanes and tornadoes may send right to the top of your car).
The Secret to Getting Cheap Car Insurance in Alabama
To get cheap car insurance in Alabama, there are different tactics you can try. The first is to ask your insurance carrier about any special discounts they offer. In some cases, having a clean driving record or installing certain safety features in your car can lower your monthly premium.
You should also know that your Alabama car insurance price is partially determined by factors like where you live, your credit score, and your education level. If any of these things change, it could help drive your premium down.
However, the single best way to save on car insurance is to shop for a new insurance carrier. By choosing the right carrier, you can save plenty of money while also getting the coverage you deserve.
What Do I Need to Get Auto Insurance in Alabama
Now you know the minimum car insurance requirements in Alabama and why you should always get more than the minimum. But do you know where to find the best possible car insurance today?
USAgencies specializes in offering the best coverage at the most competitive prices. If you’re ready to get the best car insurance, request a quote online, visit us at the nearest office, or give us a call at 800-420-3712.