120+ more*Quotes generated for Insurify users within the last 10 days. Last updated on June 10, 2026. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
*Quotes generated for Insurify users within the last 10 days. Last updated on June 10, 2026. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
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Updated
Most states require drivers to carry a minimum amount of liability car insurance.
State minimum coverage might not be enough to cover all your costs in case you cause an accident.
If you lease or finance your car, you‘ll most likely need to carry full-coverage car insurance.
Also known as standard insurance, liability insurance pays for costs related to the bodily injury and property damage of the other driver after an accident you cause.
Only one state — New Hampshire — allows you to forgo buying car insurance, provided you can prove you have enough money to pay in the event of an auto accident. If you live anywhere else, state law requires you to buy liability insurance coverage that meets or exceeds the state’s minimum limits.
Liability insurance is an excellent option for affordable coverage, but it’s important to know how far that coverage will extend while also considering what’s best for your personal situation. Many drivers choose to purchase additional comprehensive or collision coverage for a greater level of financial protection.
Liability car insurance covers damage to the other person’s vehicle, along with their medical costs, if you cause an accident. You can’t use liability coverage to fix your own vehicle or pay your medical bills, but it reduces the burden of having to pay out of pocket for someone else’s accident-related expenses.
Without liability car insurance, you’d be entirely responsible for paying the other driver‘s costs should they sue you and win damages. You’d also face penalties such as fines or a suspended license if you live in a state that requires liability insurance. These states provide minimum coverage limits, but you can purchase additional coverage.
When you file a claim, your insurance company will pay up to your coverage limit.
Rates start as low as $42/mo. when you compare with Insurify
Liability insurance primarily covers costs for bodily injury and property damage, including the following expenses for the other driver in an accident you caused:
Emergency room visit after the accident
CT scan and other medical tests
Extended hospital stay
Physical therapy
Vehicle and auto-body repairs
Vehicle replacement (if the car is totaled)
Damage to other property, such as a fence or phone pole
Most states use an at-fault judgment, which means if there’s an accident, both drivers’ insurance companies will determine who was responsible. Then, the at-fault driver needs to file a claim for insurance to cover the other person’s expenses from the damage.
In no-fault states, expenses are covered by each driver’s policy through personal injury protection (PIP) coverage.
Ideally, when both drivers have liability coverage, their insurance will cover the other driver’s vehicle and medical expenses, depending on who’s at fault. So if someone rear-ends you and you’re not at fault, for example, their insurance would cover you.
But if the damage exceeds the coverage limit or you have additional expenses, like needing a rental car to get around while your vehicle is being fixed, liability coverage may not provide adequate coverage.
Here are some things liability policies won’t cover:
Damage to your vehicle: Whether you’re at fault or not, liability insurance doesn’t cover damage to your vehicle from an accident or other sources. Comprehensive and collision insurance extend coverage to your own vehicle.
Your medical expenses: Your liability insurance helps cover medical expenses if you injure someone else in an accident, but it won’t cover your medical expenses if you’re injured.
You’ll need to buy collision insurance to cover these types of damage.
Liability insurance also won’t help you if you’re hit by another driver who doesn’t have insurance or who has too little insurance. In those situations, uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage would pay. But those coverages are typically optional, so you’ll have to choose them and pay an additional premium for them.
Different types of liability insurance affect what your insurer will cover. Minimum requirements for liability insurance vary by state, so your state may not require all the following coverages:
If the other driver faces injuries from an accident that you cause, your liability insurance will cover things like their emergency room visit, CT scan, or an extended hospital stay. It also covers lost wages and legal fees if the other driver decides to sue you for their injuries.
If your policy includes your family members, bodily injury liability coverage also applies to any damage they may cause to someone else while driving your vehicle.
This coverage operates with per-person and per-accident limits. This means, if multiple people in the other car (or even a pedestrian involved in the accident) need medical care, your bodily injury liability insurance can cover costs for each person up to your coverage limit. The per-accident limit applies to how much your insurer will cover overall in an accident.
This type of liability coverage pays for damages to the other driver‘s vehicle from an accident you caused. If you hit a fence or a city utility pole, your property damage coverage can also pay the property owner for those damages.
Personal injury protection, or PIP, coverage covers medical expenses regardless of fault. No-fault states require PIP coverage, so both drivers must file a claim with their insurance companies regardless of who caused the accident.
In the 1970s, some states proposed legislation to introduce no-fault insurance to reduce claim delays and the number of cases that went to court. Types of coverage and limits vary, but in most states, PIP covers medical fees, lost wages, and ongoing care for accident-related injuries. Some PIP policies also cover the cost of hiring a person to perform the essential services that someone injured in an accident can‘t perform.
Medical insurance coverage, or Med Pay, is an add-on that covers medical expenses for you and your passengers, even if you’re at fault. Specifically, this insurance covers costs for hospital visits and stays, doctor’s visits, health insurance deductibles, surgeries, and funeral expenses.
Some states that don’t offer Med Pay coverage require PIP instead, so depending on where you live, you’ll have one or the other. Compared to PIP coverage, Med Pay tends to be optional and fails to cover lost wages and more. You might purchase this coverage to extend protection to your vehicle and medical expenses beyond basic liability coverage.
Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage protects drivers involved in a hit-and-run or an accident with an uninsured or underinsured driver. Unfortunately, 12.6% of drivers are uninsured even though it’s required, according to the Insurance Research Council. Or, they may not have enough coverage to pay for the damage they caused. Many states combine uninsured and underinsured motorist insurance into one policy. Some require insurers to include the coverage in every policy they sell but allow drivers to decline the coverage, typically in writing.
Uninsured motorist insurance covers medical bills for both you and your passengers and damages to your vehicle. Some states may not cover damage due to a hit-and-run, so you’ll need to check with your insurer and consider purchasing collision coverage.
*Quotes generated for Insurify users within the last 10 days. Last updated on June 10, 2026. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
*Quotes generated for Insurify users within the last 10 days. Last updated on June 10, 2026. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
Depending on where you live, your minimum liability limits will vary because states set their own requirements for registered drivers.
The split limit for Alabama, for example, is 20/50/25. The first number represents bodily injury per person, the second represents bodily injury per accident, and the final number represents property damage per accident.
Find the minimum insurance requirements for your state, as listed by the Insurance Information Institute, in the table below.
State  | Minimum Liability Limits |
|---|---|
| Alabama | 20/50/25 |
| Alaska | 50/100/25 |
| Arizona | 25/50/15 |
| Arkansas | 25/50/25 |
| California | 30/60/15 |
| Colorado | 25/50/15 |
| Connecticut | 25/50/25 |
| Delaware | 25/50/10 |
| Florida | 10/10 |
| Georgia | 25/50/25 |
| Hawaii | 20/40/10 |
| Idaho | 25/50/15 |
| Illinois | 25/50/20 |
| Indiana | 25/50/50 |
| Iowa | 20/40/15 |
| Kansas | 25/50/25 |
| Kentucky | 25/50/25 |
| Louisiana | 15/30/25 |
| Maine | 50/100/25 |
| Maryland | 30/60/15 |
| Massachusetts | 20/40/5 |
| Michigan | 20/40/10 |
| Minnesota | 30/60/10 |
| Mississippi | 25/50/25 |
| Missouri | 25/50/10 |
| Montana | 25/50/20 |
| Nebraska | 25/50/25 |
| Nevada | 25/50/20 |
| New Hampshire | 25/50/25 |
| New Jersey | 25/50/25 |
| New Mexico | 25/50/10 |
| New York | 25/50/10 |
| North Carolina | 30/60/25 |
| North Dakota | 25/50/25 |
| Ohio | 25/50/25 |
| Oklahoma | 25/50/25 |
| Oregon | 25/50/20 |
| Pennsylvania | 15/30/5 |
| Rhode Island | 25/50/25 |
| South Carolina | 25/50/25 |
| South Dakota | 25/50/25 |
| Tennessee | 25/50/15 |
| Texas | 30/60/25 |
| Utah | 30/65/25 |
| Vermont | 25/50/10 |
| Virginia | 50/100/25 |
| Washington | 25/50/10 |
| Washington, D.C. | 25/50/10 |
| West Virginia | 25/50/25 |
| Wisconsin | 25/50/10 |
| Wyoming | 25/50/20 |
Split-limit car insurance policies present liability coverage with the following categories:
Bodily injury per person
Bodily injury per accident
Property damage per accident
For example, in Ohio, the liability coverage limit is 25/50/25. This means insurance will cover up to the following:
$25,000 per person for the other driver’s injuries as well as any of their passengers
$50,000 in total for all injuries from the accident
$25,000 for damage to their vehicle
A combined limit merges everything. You have one limit for bodily injury and property damage. You can divide up a combined limit in any way to cover bodily injury or property damage after an accident instead of having separate limits.
Insurance costs can vary significantly based on location, and the amounts and types of insurance a state requires drivers to carry. Here’s a look at the average cost of liability insurance in each state, based on Insurify data.
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State | Average Monthly Quote: Liability Coverage |
|---|---|
| Wyoming | $50 |
| New Hampshire | $52 |
| Iowa | $56 |
| Wisconsin | $57 |
| Vermont | $58 |
| Tennessee | $60 |
| Montana | $61 |
| Hawaii | $62 |
| South Dakota | $63 |
| Alaska | $64 |
| Idaho | $64 |
| Ohio | $64 |
| Indiana | $65 |
| New Mexico | $65 |
| North Dakota | $65 |
| Alabama | $67 |
| Nebraska | $67 |
| North Carolina | $69 |
| Arkansas | $75 |
| Maine | $75 |
| Kansas | $78 |
| Illinois | $81 |
| West Virginia | $81 |
| Oklahoma | $83 |
| Arizona | $89 |
| Mississippi | $90 |
| Pennsylvania | $90 |
| Oregon | $91 |
| Minnesota | $92 |
| Missouri | $92 |
| Utah | $93 |
| Washington | $95 |
| California | $96 |
| Colorado | $97 |
| Louisiana | $106 |
| Massachusetts | $108 |
| Texas | $110 |
| Virginia | $116 |
| Kentucky | $120 |
| Michigan | $129 |
| Florida | $137 |
| New York | $153 |
| Georgia | $157 |
| Connecticut | $159 |
| Nevada | $159 |
| South Carolina | $160 |
| Delaware | $164 |
| Washington D.C. | $169 |
| Rhode Island | $177 |
| New Jersey | $181 |
| Maryland | $193 |
Liability coverage provides the minimum car insurance required, but other options with more coverage exist. Though liability coverage is the cheapest option and protects you from paying out of pocket for the other driver’s medical and vehicle expenses, it offers little to no protection for your own medical costs and vehicle repairs.
Additional auto insurance coverage or a more comprehensive policy helps you avoid costly medical bills and medical collections, along with some money to repair or replace your car sooner. Find information about three other types of car insurance coverage options to consider below:
Collision: Collision insurance covers repairs to your car as a result of an accident with another vehicle or if your car hits an object such as a light pole or mailbox. Additionally, it covers damage to your car from potholes and rollover accidents. Insurers sell collision coverage with a separate deductible and will reimburse you regardless of fault.
Comprehensive: Comprehensive coverage reimburses you for damage to your car caused by something other than a collision or loss due to theft. Insurers require drivers who finance their cars to have comprehensive coverage. It covers damages due to contact with an animal (such as accidentally hitting a deer on the road), fallen objects, broken windshields, weather hazards, and riots or vandalism.
Full coverage: Full coverage usually means you have comprehensive and collision insurance, along with anything else your state requires. Since most states require liability, full coverage indicates you have all three. When you finance a car, your lender usually requires you to have full-coverage car insurance.
Carrying liability coverage can keep you compliant with state laws that require a certain amount of coverage. But insurance professionals often recommend drivers buy liability limits above state minimums for greater financial protection. Check out the additional information about liability car insurance below.
Liability car insurance covers damage to another person’s vehicle and their medical costs from an accident you caused. If you get into an accident and are responsible, you’ll exchange insurance information with the other driver. Then, contact your insurance company to file a claim so your insurer can send a payment to the other driver. Most states require liability insurance, and each state sets its own minimum coverage requirements.
Property damage liability is a type of liability insurance. It pays for damages you cause to another driver’s vehicle. It also helps cover costs if you hit and damage an object, such as a fence, mailbox, or utility pole.
No-fault states require drivers to file a claim with their insurance company for any injuries, regardless of fault. These states also require drivers to purchase PIP coverage in addition to their auto insurance policy. PIP coverage pays for medical expenses, lost wages, and related costs due to the aftermath of an accident.
In at-fault states, the person who caused the accident must use their insurance to cover the other driver’s vehicle damages and any medical expenses.
No, liability insurance only covers damages to the other person’s vehicle. Comprehensive and collision insurance cover damages to your car. This additional coverage makes it worth purchasing on top of your state’s minimum required liability insurance, depending on your financial situation and insurance needs.
Most insurers will offer coverage for six- or 12-month periods. Six-month policies are generally more common. If you’re looking for a shorter-term policy, you could consider coverage from Insurify Car. It offers state-minimum liability coverage in 16 states. You can buy a policy online in minutes and choose your personalized cancellation date immediately.
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7+ years writing insurance and personal finance content
Certified financial education instructor (CFEI)
Featured in
Licensed auto and home insurance agent
4+ years experience in insurance and personal finance editing
NPN: 20564519
Featured in
Media relations director for Insurance Information Institute
20+ years in insurance and communications
Impartial, independent expert
7+ years experience in data analysis
Ph.D. in Computational Biology
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