Auto Insurance

Bodily Harm Legal responsibility Protection: What It Is

November 13, 2024

When you injure somebody in a automotive accident, bodily damage protection helps to pay for any medical prices that you’re liable for because the at-fault driver. It could possibly additionally cowl their misplaced wages if they will’t work after the crash.

Though this protection will not pay your personal medical bills, it applies to most different folks concerned within the accident, together with:

Different drivers and their passengers.
Pedestrians.
Passengers in your personal automotive, if they are not out of your family.

Bodily damage protection is important for a lot of causes, and it’s legally required in most states. It could possibly additionally cowl authorized bills from a lawsuit in case you injure somebody in a crash, offered your coverage contains sufficient legal responsibility automotive insurance coverage protection.

Remember this protection will not pay for any repairs or property harm, whether or not it’s to your car or the opposite driver’s. In truth, bodily damage protection gained’t pay any of your fast bills. This implies you’re on the hook to pay for any automotive repairs together with your personal medical bills and any misplaced revenue until your auto insurance coverage coverage contains different protection.

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On the lookout for protection to cowl your personal bills after a crash? Learn our information on kinds of automotive insurance coverage protection to seek out out what you want.

What bodily damage legal responsibility covers

Bodily damage legal responsibility protection pays for an additional particular person’s:

Medical bills, resembling emergency care, hospital charges, follow-up visits and medical gear like crutches.
Misplaced revenue, if they will’t work on account of the accident.
Funeral prices, if accidents from the accident are deadly.
Ache and struggling, if the injured driver or passengers have long-lasting emotional trauma or ache.

It could possibly additionally cowl your personal authorized charges and authorized counsel if the injured social gathering decides to sue you.

Bodily damage insurance coverage protection limits

The legal responsibility limits in your insurance coverage coverage will sometimes present three numbers, resembling “100/300/100.” These numbers signify your per-person bodily damage legal responsibility protection, per-accident bodily damage legal responsibility protection and per-accident property harm legal responsibility protection.

This third quantity is the quantity your insurer pays to restore one other particular person’s car or different property per at-fault accident. It’s useful to grasp property harm legal responsibility insurance coverage, however it’s not particularly related to bodily damage insurance coverage, so we are able to skip protecting that for now.

For instance, let’s say you purchase a coverage with bodily damage insurance coverage limits of 100/300. You then trigger an accident that ends in the next bills for accidents for the three folks within the different automotive:

Michael: $30,000
Anne: $40,000
Chris: $110,000

Complete bills: $180,000*

*Based mostly on common price of motor-vehicle accidents in line with the Nationwide Security CouncilNationwide Security Council. Prices of Motor-Automobile Accidents. Accessed Dec 4, 2023.View all sources.

That is how one can interpret your insurance coverage protection and the way a lot you’ll must pay out of pocket:

Bodily damage restrict per particular person. The primary quantity, 100, is your bodily damage per-person payout restrict. Your coverage is not going to pay greater than this quantity for anybody particular person’s accidents. On this case, each Michael and Anne have medical bills below $100,000, so your bodily damage insurance coverage will cowl all of their bills as a result of they fall below your coverage’s per-person limits. Nonetheless, as a result of Chris’ medical prices are over $100,000, you’ll must pay the remainder of his bills by yourself — on this case, the $10,000 that exceeds your coverage’s restrict.

Bodily damage restrict per accident. The second quantity, 300, is your per-accident restrict, or the utmost quantity your coverage pays for all accidents in anybody accident. This quantity stays the identical regardless of how many individuals are injured in a crash. As you’ll be able to see above, the whole medical bills on this case are $180,000. Your coverage will cowl $300,000 per accident, so it could look like your insurance coverage can cowl the whole accident. However your bodily damage restrict per particular person nonetheless applies. Despite the fact that these bills gained’t exceed the per-accident restrict, you are still liable for paying for the bills above your per-person restrict for Chris.

How a lot do you owe? For this accident, you will have to pay $10,000 out of pocket in whole to cowl the rest of Chris’ medical bills over your $100,000 per-person restrict. Since it is a legal responsibility insurance coverage declare, you gained’t have to pay a deductible.

?Nerdy Tip

When you obtain medical consideration for accidents associated to a automotive accident, you need to give the supplier your medical health insurance data in addition to the at-fault driver’s automotive insurance coverage data. This helps insurers hold observe of — and canopy — medical bills related to a automotive insurance coverage declare.

Do you want bodily damage legal responsibility protection?

Sure, you almost certainly want bodily damage legal responsibility protection to legally drive wherever within the U.S. apart from components of AlaskaState of Alaska Division of Motor Autos. Necessary Insurance coverage. Accessed Dec 4, 2023.View all sources, New HampshireThe State of New Hampshire Insurance coverage Division. 2022 Car Insurance coverage Client Ceaselessly Requested Questions. Accessed Dec 4, 2023.View all sources, New JerseyDivision of Banking and Insurance coverage. Get Authorized with New Jersey’s Fundamental Auto Insurance coverage Coverage. Accessed Dec 4, 2023.View all sources and VirginiaVirginia Division of Motor Autos. Uninsured Motor Automobile Payment. Accessed Dec 4, 2023.View all sources.

Nonetheless, it’s worthwhile to meet sure necessities to be exempt from protection in sure states. For example, in Alaska you’ll be able to decide out of automotive insurance coverage provided that you reside in a distant space. In the meantime, Virginia residents who want to decide out should pay $500 to the state’s Division of Motor Autos in lieu of shopping for protection.

Though New Jersey doesn’t require bodily damage insurance coverage protection, you have to purchase different insurance coverage — property harm legal responsibility and private damage safety — to legally drive. Property harm legal responsibility covers harm you trigger to a different car or property in an at-fault accident, whereas private damage safety covers medical bills in case you’re in an accident, no matter fault.

Learn how a lot bodily damage legal responsibility protection your state requires by utilizing the drop-down field under.

State minimal bodily damage legal responsibility insurance coverage necessities

State	Necessities
Alabama	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Alaska	(Automobile insurance coverage is optionally available for sure distant residents) $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $100,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Arizona	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $15,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Arkansas	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
California	$15,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $30,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $5,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Colorado	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $15,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Connecticut	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident
Delaware	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $15,000 private damage safety per particular person $30,000 private damage safety per accident
Florida	$10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $10,000 private damage safety
Georgia	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Hawaii	$20,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $40,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $10,000 private damage safety
Idaho	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $15,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Illinois	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $20,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident
Indiana	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Iowa	$20,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $40,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $15,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Kansas	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident Private damage safety together with $4,500 in medical bills, as much as $900 per 30 days for a 12 months for incapacity or lack of revenue, $25 per day for in-home companies, $2,000 for funeral burial or cremation prices, and $4,500 for rehabilitation Survivors advantages together with as much as $900 per 30 days for a 12 months for incapacity or lack of revenue and $25 per day for in-home companies
Kentucky	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident Or a coverage with a single restrict of $60,000
Louisiana	$15,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $30,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Maine	$50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $100,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $100,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident $2,000 medical funds protection Or a mixed single legal responsibility restrict of $125,000
Maryland	$30,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $60,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $15,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $30,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $60,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident $15,000 uninsured/underinsured property harm protection per accident
Massachusetts	$20,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $40,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $5,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $20,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $40,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident $8,000 private damage safety
Michigan	$50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $100,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident outdoors Michigan $1 million property safety inside Michigan $250,000* private damage safety *Decrease PIP limits out there for sure Medicare and Medicaid recipients.
Minnesota	$30,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $60,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident $40,000 private damage safety
Mississippi	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Missouri	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident
Montana	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $20,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Nebraska	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident
Nevada	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $20,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
New Hampshire	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist property harm protection $1,000 medical funds protection
New Jersey	$5,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $15,000 private damage safety
New Mexico	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
New York	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $50,000 legal responsibility for loss of life per particular person $100,000 legal responsibility for loss of life per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist bodily damage protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured motorist bodily damage protection per accident $50,000 private damage safety
North Carolina	$30,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $60,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $30,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $60,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist property harm protection per accident
North Dakota	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident $30,000 private damage safety
Ohio	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Oklahoma	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Oregon	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $20,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident $15,000 private damage safety
Pennsylvania	$15,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $30,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $5,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $5,000 medical advantages
Rhode Island	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
South Carolina	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist property harm protection
South Dakota	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident
Tennessee	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Texas	$30,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $60,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Utah	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $65,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $15,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $3,000 private damage safety
Vermont	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $100,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident $10,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist property harm protection per accident
Virginia	(Minimal limits if a driver purchases automotive insurance coverage, which is optionally available. Drivers who don’t buy insurance coverage pay a $500 price.) $30,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $60,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $20,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $30,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per particular person $60,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident $20,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist protection per accident
Washington	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident
Washington, D.C.	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident $5,000 uninsured motorist property harm protection per accident
West Virginia	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $25,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist property harm protection
Wisconsin	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $10,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist protection per particular person $50,000 uninsured motorist protection per accident
Wyoming	$25,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per particular person $50,000 bodily damage legal responsibility per accident $20,000 property harm legal responsibility per accident

How a lot bodily damage legal responsibility protection do you want?

At a minimal, you’ll need to get the quantity required to drive legally in your state. Some consultants advocate having bodily damage limits of not less than $100,000/$300,000. Nonetheless, you might need to purchase insurance coverage with larger limits to guard any monetary property that could possibly be seized in a lawsuit. Basically, it’s really helpful to have sufficient protection to cowl your web price (what you personal minus what you owe).

When you don’t have sufficient legal responsibility protection to pay for an at-fault accident, you’ll nonetheless be liable for paying for the opposite particular person’s accidents. This might end result within the different driver suing you, probably placing your financial savings, home and different property in danger.

Many vehicle insurers gained’t promote bodily damage legal responsibility protection over $500,000. In case your insurer doesn’t promote a coverage with limits which are excessive sufficient to cowl your web price, think about shopping for umbrella insurance coverage. Umbrella protection might help cowl you in case you’ve maxed out your legal responsibility insurance coverage limits.

» MORE: Examine auto insurance coverage charges

Bodily Harm Legal responsibility Protection: What It Is

See what you possibly can save on automotive insurance coverage

What bodily damage legal responsibility covers

Bodily damage insurance coverage protection limits

Do you want bodily damage legal responsibility protection?

How a lot bodily damage legal responsibility protection do you want?

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