Auto Insurance Coverage Estimator
Estimate appropriate auto insurance coverage based on your vehicle, assets, and risk profile.
Right-size your auto coverage
Recommends liability limits, full coverage, deductibles, and umbrella based on your vehicle, assets, and risk profile.
Net worth excluding retirement accounts (which are often creditor-protected).
Affects premium estimates and state-minimum context.
How to use this calculator
- Enter your vehicle's current market value—use Kelley Blue Book or Edmunds for accuracy.
- Select vehicle status—financed and leased vehicles require full coverage by contract.
- Pick your driver age bracket—age is one of the biggest premium-rating factors.
- Enter annual mileage—lower mileage often qualifies for low-mileage discounts.
- Be honest about your driving record—tickets and at-fault accidents affect both rates and recommended coverage.
- Enter total assets to protect—this drives your liability limit and whether you need an umbrella policy.
- Choose your state cost tier—premiums vary 2–3× across states.
- Click Recommend to get a full coverage stack with liability limits, deductibles, umbrella recommendation, and a premium estimate.
How auto insurance coverage is sized
Most drivers carry far too little liability coverage—often just their state's legal minimum, which can be as low as $15,000 per person. In any serious accident, medical bills and lawsuits blow past these limits in hours, exposing your savings, your home equity, and future wages to garnishment. The right way to size auto coverage is to match your liability limits to your assets and your physical damage coverage to your vehicle's value.
Liability coverage: 100/300/100 explained
Auto liability limits are written as three numbers, in thousands: bodily injury per person / bodily injury per accident / property damage. A 100/300/100 policy pays up to $100,000 per injured person, up to $300,000 total per accident for injuries, and up to $100,000 for property damage you cause. State minimums often sit at 25/50/25 or even 15/30/5—nowhere near enough. A single overnight ER visit can exceed $50,000; a multi-car pileup can destroy $100k+ of vehicles in seconds.
Our recommendation ladder:
- Assets under $50k: 50/100/50 (above state minimums, still affordable).
- Assets $50k–$500k: 100/300/100—the widely recommended baseline.
- Assets $500k–$1M: 250/500/100 for higher per-accident protection.
- Assets over $1M: 250/500/100 plus a $1M–$5M umbrella policy. Umbrellas cost just $150–$400 per million annually and sit on top of your auto and home liability—exceptional value for high-net-worth households.
Full coverage: when it pays and when to drop it
"Full coverage" means adding comprehensive (theft, fire, weather, animal strikes, vandalism) and collision (damage from any accident, regardless of fault) on top of liability. Lenders and lessors require both until the vehicle is paid off. Once you own the car outright, the decision becomes economic: if the annual comp+collision premium exceeds roughly 10% of your vehicle's value, the coverage no longer pays for itself. As a rule of thumb, drop comp and collision when the vehicle is worth less than $4,000 and self-insure by banking the difference.
Choosing a deductible
The deductible is what you pay out of pocket before insurance covers the rest. Higher deductibles mean lower premiums—but only choose a deductible you can actually afford to pay tomorrow. For a $20k vehicle, $500 is standard; for $30k+, $1,000 saves meaningful premium if you have emergency savings; for older vehicles near the $4k threshold, $1,000 may be all that's reasonable.
Why state minimums are a trap
State minimums exist to make insurance legally affordable, not to actually protect you. If you cause $300,000 of medical bills carrying 25/50/25 coverage, your insurer pays $50,000 and you are personally on the hook for the remaining $250,000. The plaintiff can pursue your savings, garnish wages for years, and in some states place liens on your home. The premium difference between 25/50/25 and 100/300/100 is usually $10–$25/month—a small price to avoid a life-ruining judgment.
Worked example
Scenario: A 35-year-old driver with a clean record, $22,000 vehicle owned outright, $200,000 in assets (savings, home equity, investments), 12,000 miles/year, in an average-cost state.
- Liability recommendation: 100/300/100 (assets in the $50k–$500k band)
- Full coverage: Yes—vehicle value $22k is well above the $4k threshold
- Recommended deductible: $500 (standard for mid-value vehicles)
- Umbrella: Not yet—assets below $1M threshold
- Estimated premium: ~$1,100–$1,400/year ($90–$120/month)
Why not state minimum? A 25/50/25 policy might save $15/month but leaves $175,000 of assets exposed in any serious accident. The 100/300/100 upgrade costs maybe $20/month more—a 0.1% insurance cost against the assets it protects.
Contrast: If this driver had $1.5M in assets, we'd recommend 250/500/100 plus a $2M umbrella. The umbrella alone (~$300/year) doubles the liability protection for less than the cost of a streaming subscription.
Glossary
- Liability Coverage
- Pays for injuries and damage you cause to others. Written as three limits: per-person / per-accident / property-damage, all in thousands.
- Full Coverage
- Liability plus comprehensive and collision coverage protecting your own vehicle. Required by lenders and lessors.
- Comprehensive
- Covers non-collision damage: theft, vandalism, fire, weather, falling objects, and animal strikes.
- Collision
- Covers damage to your vehicle from any accident, regardless of fault, minus your deductible.
- Deductible
- The amount you pay out of pocket per claim before insurance pays the rest. Higher deductibles lower your premium.
- Umbrella Policy
- Extra liability coverage ($1M–$10M) sitting above auto, home, and boat policies. Inexpensive and essential for higher-net-worth households.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers to the most common questions about auto insurance coverage estimator.
This calculator is provided for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, tax, or professional advice. Results are estimates based on the inputs you provide and standard assumptions. Actual figures may vary. Please consult a qualified professional before making financial decisions. Read our full disclaimer.