Before you try to decide what the right amount of coverage should be. You first need to understand what Automobile Liability Insurance covers. There are always two factors that make up liability coverage. There is bodily injury and property damage liability.

Bodily Injury liability includes the injury that are suffered due to on automobile accidents.

1. Emergency aid at the scene

2. Medical bills due to injuries

3. Restitution for lost salary

4. Final expenses

5. Legal counsel costs

Property damage liability protects you against damages that you cause to another in a car accident.

1. Structural damage to homes, storefronts, etc.

2. Restauration cost for other immobile objects

3. Automobile damage or total loss compensation

So now the question is what limits of coverage do I need? Each state has there own minimum guidelines. Usually around $15,000/$30,000 $15,000 but that will vary by state. When you look at the coverage’s I just wrote down you might be thinking there are three numbers there not two I don’t understand. Bodily injury liability coverage comes in two forms either split limit coverage which is shown above or single limit coverage.

Single vs split limit: In example above of 15,000/30,000/15,000 in coverage, this first 15,000 would cover individual injuries to others obtained from the accident you caused up to 15,000 per person. The 30,000 represents the maximum pay out for injuries caused to the while accident. If you had a single limit of bodily injury coverage it would be equal to 30,000 for the extra accident broken up as needed.

The number that always ends your liability coverage is your property damage limit in the above example it is represented by $15,000.

By this point you could probably sue how state limits that are usually 15,000/30,000/15,000 might not be adequate coverage. With medical cost and the price of automobiles and property rising you might want to consider higher limits.

I would suggest never having coverage less than $100,000/$300,000 for bodily injury and $50,000 property damage with even higher coverage recommended. The cost to go from $15,000/$30,000 to $100,000/$300,000 or even higher shouldn’t be more than a couple of hundred dollars a year at most. I would rather spend a couple hundred dollars more per year than be stuck owing thousand due to medical bills for a person that I injured in an accident. When talking with your insurance agent always get quotes with higher liability limits so you can compare the different prices between coverage. If you need to off set cost a little and you are getting full coverage consider having a higher collision deductible, but insurance cost savings is another topic to be written about later.