Alabama Car Insurance: A Simple Guide for Natives

Everyone knows the feeling; the car insurance bill shows up in the mail and all you can do is groan, knowing a big chunk of your monthly budget is about to go out the window. There’s no help for it though, the risks of driving without insurance are simply too great.

AL requires that all motorists carry a minimum liability policy. This means that if you caused an accident your insurance will pay for medical and property damage expenses for the motorist whose car you hit. This includes your legal fees. The minimum state limits (motorists are always encouraged to carry more than the minimum) are twenty thousand dollars for injury liability to one person (if you are in a two car accident and the other car has only one passenger your insurance will pay the first twenty thousand dollars of his medical bills), forty thousand dollars for all injuries in an accident (so if the car that you hit had four people in it insurance would cover the first forty thousand dollars of their combined medical bills) and ten thousand dollars for property damage (insurance will pay for ten thousand dollars in repairs to stop signs, buildings and the other motorist’s vehicle). The driver of the car that caused the accident is held responsible for any expenses incurred above and beyond those limits.

All insurance companies also offer collision and comprehensive insurance to their drivers. Comprehensive insurance will pay for vehicle repair if you are the driver at fault in an accident as well as certain incidents that are ruled as no-fault by the authorities, such as striking a deer or going off the road in bad weather. While not required by the state comprehensive coverage may be required for any vehicle for which a lender still holds a lien.

Licensed drivers in AL are not required to carry PIP (personal injury protection; this is a requirement in states that implement a no-fault policy for each accident) or uninsured motorist insurance on their policy; however, uninsured/underinsured motorist insurance is strongly recommended. No-fault insurance means that regardless of the individual responsible for an accident each motorist’s medical and property repair expenses are paid by their own insurance company, uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage means that if you are the victim of a hit and run or the driver who causes the accident does not carry sufficient coverage to pay your medical and repair expenses your own insurance company will pick up the balance.

Further information about Alabama insurance policies can be obtained from the Alabama Department of Insurance in Montgomery by calling ( 334) 269-3550 or emailing them.