What is comprehensive insurance for car

Comprehensive insurance is a car insurance policy that covers certain damages to your vehicle that are not caused by a collision with another car. It is required on leased vehicles, and on vehicles that are currently being paid for by a loan. Comprehensive auto insurance is supplementary, meaning it’s an optional coverage which can be added to an insurance policy. For maximum protection, you can pair comprehensive coverage with liability and collision coverage, or choose classic car insurance that provides flexible usage and coverage designed specifically for classic cars.

If you're wondering "What is comprehensive insurance going to do for me?"  Here’s an example: you’re dashing out of your house for work in the morning and as you’re opening the driver’s side door of your car, you realize a baseball-sized chunk of hail has crashed through your windshield. You think to yourself, all windshield damage is equal under my state-minimum insurance policy, right?

Wrong.

To avoid paying for damages like this out of pocket, you need comprehensive insurance. A windshield shattered by hail would be covered by comprehensive insurance, while a windshield shattered by a traffic accident would be covered by either your collision insurance or the other driver’s liability insurance.

Every accident is unique – whether comprehensive insurance covers your accident is determined by a wide set of circumstances. Here are a few types of damage that may be covered by comprehensive insurance:

• Theft 
• Fire
• Vandalism
• Contact with animals
• Falling or flying objects
• Hail
• Windshield damage
• Windstorms
• Earthquakes
  

Find out more about what is covered by Nationwide comprehensive auto insurance.

What is comprehensive coverage compared to collision? You could say they’re two halves of a whole. Collision insurance covers you if your car is damaged by another vehicle, a stationary object or by rolling over. If you’re in a collision, you’re covered by collision insurance. Simple enough, right? Conversely, comprehensive insurance covers just about everything else. As mentioned above, comprehensive covers you if your car is damaged by everything from theft to natural disasters. You could say that collision is for when you hit something else, and comprehensive is for when something else hits you (provided that something else isn’t another car).

Yes. Some people mistakenly use these terms interchangeably, but there is an important difference, namely that most insurance providers do not offer anything called “full coverage.” In other words, there is no single auto insurance policy that covers everything.

As mentioned, comprehensive insurance is an optional coverage that can be added to your state-required liability insurance which provides additional protection for accidents not caused by a vehicular collision. Rather than having one super policy, you can pair different types of coverage.

You’re not required by law to have comprehensive insurance. That said, lenders will often require you to have it if your car is leased or not fully paid off.1 Comprehensive insurance also covers damage from sources that are often beyond your control. So, unless you’ve learned to command the weather, every tree branch near you, and every would-be thief in the area, then comprehensive coverage is a good idea.

Learn more about comprehensive coverage and get a quote today so you can build a custom policy that’s right for you.

1 https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/insurance/comprehensive-auto-insurance, Accessed March 2022..

Comprehensive insurance coverage, also known as “other than collision” coverage, is a car insurance coverage that can help pay the costs of damage to your car for non-collision related claims. For example, it can help pay for damages caused by hail, theft, fire or hitting an animal.

It’s important to keep in mind that this coverage is optional. You have to add it on top of other coverages you may have, like liability insurance. But, if you’re financing or leasing your car, your lender will likely require it.

Most drivers benefit from this coverage, and you can learn more by getting a quote from the AARP® Auto Insurance Program from The Hartford1 today.

Your comprehensive insurance pays for damage caused by:

• Natural disasters, like hurricanes or tornados
• Vandalism
• Theft
• Fire
• Falling objects
• A civil disturbance, like a riot
• Hitting an animal, like if you hit a deer
• Glass damage

Your comprehensive car insurance policy will not help cover:

• Damage to your car from a collision
• Medical expenses
• Legal fees
• Lost income for you or your passengers if you miss work after an accident
• Damage to another person’s car from a collision
• Property stolen from your car

Your deductible is the amount you pay on your claim before your auto coverage kicks in. Once you pay that, your car insurance will cover the rest of your costs, up to your limit.

Let’s say your car is damaged and will cost $6,000 to repair, and your deductible is $1,000. You’ll only pay out of pocket for the $1,000 deductible, and then your insurance company will pay the other $5,000 on your comprehensive claim. When you buy comprehensive insurance, you’ll choose a deductible amount. 

According to the Insurance Information Institute, the average car insurance cost per year for comprehensive car insurance in the U.S. was about $170 in 2018, which is the most recent year that data is available.2 Comprehensive car insurance rates can vary and some factors that influence the cost are your:

• Driving history
• Car’s model and age
• Deductible amount

If you plan to buy comprehensive auto insurance coverage, selecting a higher deductible can help lower the cost of your premium. However, it also means you’ll have to pay more out-of-pocket if you have an accident. In most cases, you’ll want to base your deductible choice on your car’s actual cash value (ACV).

For damaged cars, our comprehensive insurance coverage will help pay an amount up to your ACV to either repair or replace it. If the cost of repairs exceeds your car’s ACV, it’s totaled. In this case, we’ll pay the sum of its ACV to you to help replace it. When deciding how much car insurance you need, it’s important to think about the ACV of your vehicle.

To learn more, get a car insurance quote for comprehensive coverage today.

Drivers across the country can benefit from comprehensive car insurance. This optional coverage is especially helpful if you live in an area with a lot of theft, vandalism or natural disasters. For instance, if you live on the Florida coast or in an area with wildfires, this coverage can help protect your car from the costs of non-collision damage.

Questions you can ask yourself to see if you need this coverage are:

• Does your car lender require comprehensive coverage? If you lease or finance, chances are they do, and you won’t be able to get your car without it.
• How much is your car worth? If it’s less than what you’d pay for your insurance premium, this coverage may not be worth it.
• Do you live in a heavily populated area? Cities and towns with higher populations can also have more crime that you may want protection from.

It’s easy to mix up comprehensive and collision insurance. This is because both coverages protect your car. However, they cover different things.

Collision insurance helps cover car accidents, while comprehensive coverage is more of a physical damage insurance. It helps pay for damages that are outside of your control. So, if a natural disaster or animal damages your car, this coverage can help pay to repair it.

Your auto insurance not only protects your car, but your loved ones, too. Luckily, it’s easy to get a car insurance quote from us. Get yours today or call us at 888-546-9099 to speak with a representative who can answer any questions you may have.

2 Insurance Information Institute, “Facts + Statistics: Auto insurance”