What Is The Minimum Insurance Coverage For Car Accidents in Oklahoma?

Insurance coverage for car accidents protects motorists in the event of an accident. Without this insurance, your assets could be at risk if an accident victim sues you. Oklahoma requires that motorists carry a policy with acceptable coverage levels before the state registers a vehicle. Below, we look at the minimum insurance coverage you must have, but we first explain liability coverage.

Does Oklahoma Require Liability Insurance?

Yes. Oklahoma is a fault state. That means that the motorist who is at fault must pay compensation to those damaged in the car crash. By contrast, in a no-fault state, each motorist would use their own insurance regardless of fault.

Oklahoma drivers purchase liability coverage to cover the damages to those they hurt. You can’t use your liability insurance for your injuries when you are to blame.

Minimum Bodily Injury Liability Protection

Insurance coverage for car accidents requires that you carry at least $25,000 in bodily injury liability insurance per injured victim, up to $50,000 car per accident. This insurance will cover a victim’s injury losses, such as:

• Medical bills
• Lost income or wages
• Pain and suffering

If one person is hurt, at least $25,000 is available. If two or more people are hurt, a maximum of $50,000 is available. Three victims would split $50,000 in three ways unless the at-fault driver had a policy with higher limits than required by law. Of course, you can buy insurance with higher coverage limits, and we discuss whether that is a good idea below.

Minimum Property Damage Protection

The state also requires that you have at least $25,000 in property damage protection. This will cover damage you might cause to someone else’s property, most often their car. If they suffer more damage than the coverage that you have you may be liable for the deficiency in coverage.

Should I Purchase More Coverage?

You do have this option. The state recommends increasing your limits to $100,000 per person for bodily injury, with $300,000 available per accident. Also, they recommend increasing property damage coverage to $100,000.

Buying insurance with higher limits provides peace of mind. Medical care is incredibly expensive, and even a minor injury could cost more than $10,000 in care. A medium-severity accident will quickly eat through the minimum $25,000 in bodily injury coverage required by the state. If the victim needs additional care or has lost income, they could sue you personally.

Medical expenses continue to soar, so $100,000 will provide greater protection against the high cost of treatment. Consult an insurance agent to discuss how much premiums will be on your preferred policy.

What Other Insurance Can I Purchase?

The insurance coverage discussed above is required. But you can also choose to purchase optional coverages to provide greater protection. Let’s discuss a few.

Uninsured And Underinsured Motorist Coverage

What happens if an uninsured driver hits you? Because they are at fault, they should pay compensation—but they have no insurance. They might also not have assets, like cash sitting in a bank account. Because they are at fault, you can’t use your liability coverage, which only covers other people you hurt in a crash. Are you out of luck?

Fortunately, you can buy uninsured and underinsured coverage. The uninsured portion covers you when an at-fault driver is uninsured. The underinsured portion covers you if the at-fault driver has insurance, but it’s not enough. Any liability policy issued in Oklahoma should include uninsured motorist coverage, though you can reject it in writing. We recommend you keep it.

Minimum Liability Insurance

You can use collision insurance to repair the other persons vehicle in the event of a crash. It’s no-fault insurance, so you can use it even if you cause a wreck. The important thing to understand about this minimum insurance is that there are limits to the coverage. Another important thing to understand is that If you are at fault, basic collision insurance will not cover your vehicle. Its not surprising but this limitation is a shock to many unsuspecting accident victims. In the event the Police give you the ticket for the accident you should consider fighting the ticket. If you do not fight the ticket the ticket will be evidence that you are at fault.

Comprehensive Insurance

This coverage will pay for damage to your vehicle caused by fire, flooding, theft, or other causes. Comprehensive insurance is often referred to as full coverage. If you are in an accident and have full coverage damage to the other persons vehicle as well as your damage is covered. The damage to your vehicle is covered regardless of fault. In this case its important that the amount of coverage that you carry is enough to repair your car. In the event you owe money on the vehicle and the coverage is less than what you owe you might come up short and owe money to the company that financed the vehicle for you.

More Personal Injury Articles From Our Tulsa Lawyers Blog

Oklahoma Car Accident Lawyers in Your Corner

Insurance coverage for car accidents doesn’t mean the insurance company is in it for you. Negotiating with insurers is a hassle, but Kania Law Office can help. We have years of experience helping accident victims get monetary damages and are willing to meet for a free consultation. Insurance company’s are not in the business of paying you what you deserve once your in a car accident. Its important to your case that you get representation to advance your case on terms that meet your legal needs. Call 918-743-2233 or connect with us online.