Driving Out of State This Summer? What Your Auto Policy Does at the State Line and at the Rental Counter

By the middle of June half my calls are somebody heading to Myrtle Beach or a wedding in Columbus, and they all start the same way: "Am I covered when I'm down there?" and then "Do I need to buy the insurance at the rental counter?"

Yes to the first one. The second one depends on what you already have.

Your personal auto policy covers you anywhere in the United States and Canada. You don't have to call us or add anything. It goes with the car.

There's one wrinkle. If the state you're driving through requires higher minimum liability limits than what you carry, most policies bump your limits up to that state's minimum while you're there. That sounds like a bonus, but it's still the minimum, and the minimum isn't much. If you're carrying West Virginia's minimum limits at home, you're carrying minimum limits everywhere you go. A bad wreck 500 miles from home with $25,000 in property damage coverage is a hard spot to be in, and I've had that conversation with people more than once.

If you're not sure what limits you carry, that's a two-minute phone call.

Everybody's been in this spot. You're tired, you've been on the road all day, and the person behind the counter asks if you want the damage waiver for $25 or $30 a day. You've got about ten seconds to decide.

What I tell my clients:

• If you carry collision and comprehensive on your own car, your policy will usually extend that same coverage to a rental you're driving for personal use. Your deductible still applies, but you're covered.
• If you only carry liability on your own car, there's nothing to extend. You wreck the rental, you're paying for the rental. Buy the waiver.
• The part people don't think about is loss of use. If the rental sits in the shop for two weeks, the rental company bills you for the two weeks it couldn't rent the car. Some personal policies cover that and some don't. Ask me before the trip.
• Credit card coverage exists, but it's usually secondary, meaning it pays after your own policy does. So the claim still goes through your insurance.
• Moving trucks are the exception. The 15-foot truck you rent to move your daughter into an apartment isn't a private passenger vehicle, and your personal policy usually won't cover damage to it. Take the rental company's coverage on those. It's cheap compared to the alternative.

Canada is covered under a standard personal auto policy. Mexico is not. If you're driving across the southern border you need a separate Mexican auto policy, and you need to buy it before you cross. Your U.S. coverage does nothing down there, and getting in an accident without Mexican insurance can get you detained. It doesn't cost much, and I've heard what happens to people who skip it.

Your liability coverage generally follows you when you're towing a trailer, a boat, or a camper. Damage to the trailer itself and what's on it does not, unless it's listed on your policy or has its own. If you're pulling a camper this summer, we wrote a whole series on that: RV Coverage Essentials.

A few things I'd do the week before:

• Make sure your insurance card is in the glovebox or on your phone. Most states take the electronic version now, but the paper card never hurts.
• Know your deductible. That's the number you're weighing against the rental waiver.
• Check whether you have roadside assistance on your policy. It's a few dollars a year, and it beats a $300 tow bill on I-77.
• If you're renting for a month or longer, call me. Long-term rentals can fall outside what a personal policy will extend.

Heading out this summer? Call the Point Pleasant office before you go and we'll go over it. Have a good trip.

This is general information, not specific advice for your situation. Every policy is different.