Ancillary Auto Insurance Coverage

So we have already seen how we insure an auto for its primary coverage options. We cover liability, uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, medical payments, collision, and other than collision, which would all be primary coverages. There are a few ancillary coverage options that vary from company to company, so it’s important to ensure that if these ancillary coverage options are important to you that you have a company that covers these well.

ANCILLARY AUTO INSURANCE OPTIONS

  1. Roadside Assistance – Yes Auto Insurance companies do offer roadside assistance. This is the one time when they will often offer ancillary coverage for mechanical breakdown. Meaning you can get this coverage for when your radiator dies. That said coverage varies widely from company to company. Some have mileage limits, others dollar limits, so if this is important to you, please make sure you understand how your policy will cover you.
  1. Rental Coverage – This is not coverage for when you want to get a rental policy for a vacation, but rather in the event of a covered loss you can get a rental car for the time that the vehicle is unable to be used because it is in the shop.
  1. Diminishing Deductibles – It is becoming more and more common that auto insurance carriers offer diminishing deductibles. The idea behind diminishing deductibles is that every year you don’t have a claim your deductible will go down until at some point you don’t have a deductible. If you have a claim the deductible resets to whatever you purchased. This ancillary coverage can help a lot.
  1. Accident/Violation Forgiveness – Yes even insurance companies understand that mishaps happen to the best of us. So you can get ancillary accident and minor violation forgiveness from the companies. What these means is that the rate doesn’t automatically increase when something happens.
  1. New Car Replacement – If you just bought a new car, some companies have a coverage called new car replacement. Basically it protects you from the depreciation that happens to new cars the moment that you drive them off the lot. So if you have an accident to in your brand new car it pays the amount that you paid for the car rather than the actual cash value of the car, which even if you just bought it a week ago can be drastically different.
  1. Gap Coverage – If you have a loan on your car, new or old, gap coverage is extremely important. It covers the difference between what the car is worth, and what you owe on the loan. In the event of a total loss, this ancillary coverage, which can be very affordable, can be worth thousands and can ensure that you don’t end up upside down in the event of a loss to your car.

There are many other ancillary auto insurance coverage options that can be added to your vehicle depending on the company you choose. Start your quote online now, and then make sure you have the coverage you need by talking to one of our experienced agents, and be sure to tell them if one of these ancillary coverages is important to you, because they are ancillary and won’t come automatically on your policy. Unfortunately once you have an accident you will not be able to add these ancillary coverage options, so be sure it’s important that you get it right away.

This is a general explanation of coverage and different companies may treat these coverage options differently for information on exactly how your policy will respond please refer to your policy declarations page as well as the terms and conditions of your insurance policy.