Car insurance policies are meant to safeguard us and our vehicles from the inevitable road accidents that can lead to serious damage to our cars and injuries to the passengers. The roads are far from safe, and the more time you spend on them, the more the risk rises of you getting in a car accident. But what happens when you take a road trip? Is your general car insurance competent enough to ensure a safe road trip? Let’s find out.
Auto Insurance for Road Trips?
Let us be clear first, there are no auto insurance policies or car insurance companies that offer a specific policy just for road trips. Almost all the companies that are good enough in providing a great car insurance policy can also provide means for a safe road trip. But how?
There’s no auto insurance policy for road trips, but there are many add-ons and other important changes that you can do to your existing vehicle insurance policies to make them more fit for a road trip. Here are all the different modifications you need to make to your car insurance policy for a safer road trip.
Roadside Assistance
The most important add-on that was specifically made for people who take long road trips regularly and explore the world, roadside assistance is an absolute necessity when it comes to the safety of your road trip. RSA, short for roadside assistance, is not a separate policy, but an add-on to your existing car insurance policy.
Roadside assistance covers many things, things that you’d need during a road trip. For example, here are some of the general things covered under roadside assistance:
- Flat tire changing
- Gas delivery service
- Battery jumpstart
- Car lockout services
- Winching
- Towing your car to the nearest service station
Other companies might offer something extra which might include minor car repairs, etc. Not just car insurance companies, but car manufacturers and banks also offer similar services, but it is recommended that you get it from auto insurance companies as they offer it at the lowest prices.
Buy roadside assistance before any long road trip as it can be very helpful if you get in any situation. Roadside assistance is also very affordable, with prices ranging from $9 to $16 per year. Just go through the features of this plan and see what the company is offering before buying one, and also ask about the different terms and conditions.
Increase Coverage Limit
The roads are not safe, but driving around in the city under the speed limit and going to your office is safer than driving on the freeway at high speeds. Accidents that happen on the freeway are more dangerous and severe. And severe accidents cause severe damage and injuries.
If you get in a dangerous accident that causes excessive damage to your car or serious injuries to the passengers, the cost of repairs and medical treatments will also be sky high. In that case, you need to have collision coverage or personal injury protection with a sufficient coverage limit.
The same is true for an accident caused by you on the freeway, resulting in the damage and injuries of the other driver. Since you’ll be liable to pay for the entire cost of the accident of the other driver, it is important to have a higher coverage limit.
So increase your coverage limit of all your important auto insurance policies. This includes your liability insurance, collision insurance, and personal injury protection plan/ Med Pay. A higher coverage limit ensures that you won’t have to pay anything from your pockets. The only downside here is that the cost of your policy and insurance premiums will increase.
This is why you need to find the best car insurance companies in the state you live in. For example, if you live in Georgia, then look for the cheapest car insurance in Georgia and get the plan that offers the best coverage at the lowest price. Also make sure that you choose a company that has all the necessary add-ons (roadside assistance, etc) for making your road trips even safer.
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage
A very important car insurance policy that most people skip is the uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage plan and this policy is not only useful for road trips, but your general commute as well.
As the name suggests, an underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage policy can be claimed if the driver at fault does not have liability insurance or has one but the coverage limit is not enough to pay for the entire cost of the accident. There are 32 million drivers in the US who are uninsured and a lot more are underinsured.
But uninsured drivers are not an issue when it comes to road trips or why we are recommending this policy. The main benefit of having uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage is that it can help you in a hit-and-run situation.
The freeways are secluded places, and since you are going on a road trip, chances are that you will be in unfamiliar territories for most of the journey. What if you get in a car accident and the driver at fault just drives away? Finding the driver at fault would be a long process. Who pays for the repairs and medical treatments?
Uninsured motorist coverage ensures that you won’t have to worry about the financial part. It can be claimed in a hit-and-run situation. So before you take a long road trip, make sure that you also get uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
