I am a Houston Farmers auto insurance agent. I often talk to people that use the term “full coverage” to describe their auto coverage. I interpret this to mean that they have some level of liability insurance plus comprehensive coverage for their car. Sometimes customers think this means “Full coverage protects me from everything”. That is NOT correct!

 

The liability part of an auto policy covers injury to another person or damage to their vehicle. (See your policy or agent for complete terms) In my state of Texas the minimum required by law is 20/40/15 or $20,000 for an injured person, $40,000 for more than one person injured per accident, and $15,000 for damage to another persons auto. If you take this minimum coverage and add coverage for your vehicle, some would say they have full coverage. If there is a serious accident and the injuries and lost wages are $300,000, this policy would leave the customer responsible for paying about $260,000 from their assets to settle the claim. At that point the customer probably would not feel like they have full coverage! My opinion is that the liability part of a policy is VERY important. Talk to your agent for advice and consider getting the maximum coverage available and not the minimum required. You should also consider possibly getting an umbrella policy to increase your limit to a higher level that what is available on an auto policy.

It is important to have enough liability coverage to protect your current assets from lawsuits, and to protect your future assets from judgements that could result from an injury lawsuit. In addition it is important to be able to cover your moral responsibility to be able to "make it right" if you injure someone! How would you feel if someone you love is very seriously hurt and the driver only has $20,000 to offer as settlement. You don't want to be the one that only has the $20K if you hurt someone.

A so called “full coverage” policy could also be lacking uninsured motorist coverage, personal injury protection, towing/road service, rental car reimbursement, gap coverage, and more.

I suggest taking the time to understand your insurance options and get a good agents advice on what would be good coverage for your situation. Texas residents are welcome to call my Houston auto insurance agency for more information.