What Is PLPD Insurance?

What Is Personal Liability and Property Damage Insurance?

Personal liability and property damage insurance, or PLPD insurance, is the minimum amount of car insurance coverage your state requires you to carry. In every U.S. state except Michigan, PLPD is generally called liability insurance.

What Does PLPD Insurance Cover?

PLPD coverage breaks into two parts: personal liability and property damage. Personal liability insurance, also known as bodily injury coverage, activates when you’re at fault for a car accident and the other driver or their passengers require medical attention. Your personal liability insurance pays for these medical expenses and lost wages up to your liability limits.

Insurance carriers specify coverage amounts based on two numbers for personal liability: the amount it covers per person injured and the amount it covers per accident. For example, if you live in Colorado, state law requires you to have $25,000 in bodily injury liability coverage per person and $50,000 in bodily injury liability coverage per accident.

Property damage coverage refers to the costs associated with repairing another driver’s motor vehicle after an accident you’re at fault for. It also extends to damage done to a dwelling, such as replacing a damaged fence. All but two states require you to have property damage insurance, and that coverage is the third number on your liability policy (25/50/25, for example). Using the example above, Colorado drivers must have $15,000 in property damage liability coverage.

What Doesn’t PLPD Insurance Cover?

PLPD insurance doesn’t cover costs related to your vehicle damage or injuries to you or your passengers.

Damage Done to Your Vehicle

PLPD insurance covers other drivers’ vehicles, not yours. If your car is damaged in an accident you’re at fault for, you’ll need to pay for repairs out of pocket if you don’t have collision insurance.

Your Medical Bills

When you are found to be at fault for an auto accident and only have liability insurance, your car insurance company won’t cover your medical bills resulting from the accident. If you have health insurance, that provider will cover them minus any deductible or coinsurance that might apply.

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How Much PLPD Insurance Do You Need?

Your insurance provider knows the state minimum requirements for personal liability and property damage insurance, and it won’t sell you a policy that doesn’t meet those requirements. However, if you’re at fault for an accident and the other party has medical or property expenses that exceed your maximum amount of coverage, you’ll be on the hook to pay for the rest of the damages.

For example, if another driver suffers injuries totaling $30,000 but your auto insurance policy only covers the first $25,000, you’ll owe the remaining $5,000. If you can’t pay it, the other driver can sue you for damages.

This is why insurance experts recommend having $100,000 in bodily injury coverage per person, $300,000 in bodily injury coverage per accident and $100,000 in property damage coverage. You’ll pay a higher insurance premium for higher coverage amounts, but the additional protection can help minimize your out-of-pocket costs if you cause an accident.

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How Do You Get PLPD Insurance?

You can get PLPD coverage online or by calling an insurance agent or visiting a local office. Ideally, you should get multiple quotes to see which car insurance provider offers the best rates. When filling out applications, have the following information:

Personal Details

This includes your name, address, birth date and occupation. In many states, insurance providers may request your Social Security number to do a soft pull of your credit history to determine your eligibility for coverage.

Vehicle Information

Providers need to know the make, model, year and mileage of the vehicle you want to insure. You’ll also need to provide the vehicle identification number (VIN). It’s on your car’s registration papers, etched near the windshield or on a sticker on the driver’s side door.

Also, if you’re financing or leasing the vehicle, the insurance company needs to know who the lender is to send proof of car insurance coverage.

Driving History

Insurance companies also want to know how long you’ve been a driver and if you’ve had moving violations or accidents in the past three to five years. If you haven’t, you might get a safe driving discount.

Previous Insurance Coverages

If you haven’t maintained continuous insurance coverage, you could pay more for your policy. It’s why some carriers want to know who you had your previous policy with, how long it was continuous and the amount of insurance coverage you had.

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Other Types of Car Insurance

In addition to PLPD car insurance, there are other policies you can consider for added protection:

Collision Insurance

Collision insurance covers damage done to your vehicle resulting from a car accident, such as flipping it or running over a pothole. When you need repairs, you’ll file a claim with your insurance company and then take your car to an approved repair shop. Collision coverage comes with a deductible you’ll need to pay before insurance covers the rest.

Comprehensive Insurance

Comprehensive coverage pays to repair damage to your vehicle caused by events other than hitting a vehicle, such as vandalism, theft, fire, floods, falling objects and weather issues. As with collision insurance, you’ll have a deductible to pay before your insurer will cover any costs. If you financed your vehicle, your lender might require a deductible of $1,000 or lower.

Underinsured/Uninsured Motorist Coverage

Underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage pays for your car repairs and medical expenses for you and your passengers after an accident caused by an uninsured motorist or one who doesn’t have enough insurance. It has two components: bodily injury coverage and property damage coverage. Nearly two dozen states require uninsured motorist protection.

Personal Injury Protection (PIP)

PIP covers medical expenses for you and your passengers after a car accident in states with no-fault insurance. Some of the items covered include costs for X-rays, surgeries and follow-up care. PIP also covers lost income while you recover, housecleaning, child-care expenses and funeral costs.

Medical Payments Coverage (MedPay)

MedPay covers medical costs for you and your passengers after a car accident. It also protects you if you’re hurt as a pedestrian. It pays medical expenses for doctors’ visits, copays and deductibles, nursing services, trips to a physical therapist, ambulance fees and surgeries. It also helps survivors by paying funeral expenses. One of the differences between MedPay and PIP is that MedPay is available in at-fault states.

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What Is PLPD Insurance?: The Bottom Line

PLPD insurance, also known as liability insurance, provides the minimum insurance coverage your state requires. It covers bodily injury and property damage done to another driver if you caused the accident.

Minimum coverage limits for PLPD insurance vary based on your state’s laws. Consider coverage levels of $100,000/$300,000/$100,000 so you’re less likely to have out-of-pocket expenses after an at-fault accident. If you don’t have money on hand to fix your vehicle after an accident, think about full coverage to give you financial protection for any car repairs.

Top Auto Insurance Recommendations

When shopping for auto insurance, you should get quotes from three or more providers to compare prices. Two top insurance companies to consider are State Farm and Geico.

State Farm: Best Customer Experience

State Farm tends to offer some of the best insurance rates for safe drivers. Along with PLPD insurance, it has full coverage with additional protections for emergency roadside assistance, rental car reimbursement and ride-sharing coverage. State Farm also offers many discounts for driving safely, earning good grades, bundling policies and completing a safe driving course. You can get a free quote through its website or by visiting one of its thousands of agents.

Read more: State Farm insurance review

Geico: Best for Budget-Conscious Drivers

Geico offers coverage such as PLPD, comprehensive, collision, PIP and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. It’s also one of the few providers to have mechanical breakdown insurance, which pays for major mechanical repairs not related to accidents. The insurer also offers some of the lowest rates for good drivers. You can also save by bundling policies, belonging to qualifying professional associations, going on emergency deployment and more. Getting an online quote takes only a few minutes.