Bellflower Car Insurance
All residents in Bellflower, California must purchase auto insurance to comply with the state's mandatory financial responsibility laws.
If you are a resident and you own a vehicle that is registered with the California Department of Motor Vehicles, you must either show financial responsibility by posting a cash bond in the amount of $35,000 or buy auto insurance to show that you are financially responsible.
The most popular route to satisfying these laws is to buy insurance because the average person does not have the cash to post the bond. In addition, auto insurance protects you from financial loss so that you do not have to worry about paying for all of the damages that you cause out-of-pocket.
By fulfilling your obligation to pay your premiums monthly or annually, the insurance company agrees to pay for the losses covered by the coverage options that you carry.
If you are planning to satisfy financial responsibility laws by purchasing auto insurance, it is important to learn about coverage requirements and other types of coverage options that will protect you on the road. You also need to determine how much coverage is sufficient to protect your assets in the event of a loss.
Read this guide to getting Bellflower car insurance so that you know about mandatory insurance requirements, additional forms of protection, and how your rates are determined in California.
Be sure to use our FREE comparison tool at the top of this page!
What are the insurance coverage requirements in Bellflower?
Bellflower residents must comply with California auto insurance laws which have been passed by state officials in the form of legislative Vehicle Code. State law mandates that all drivers must have at least liability insurance to help pay for the damages that you cause to others when you are deemed to be negligent.
Liability will not pay for your own damages or medical bills.
Liability coverage consists of Bodily Injury and Property Damage. Bodily Injury, which is often labeled as BI on your policy, will pay for the medical bills of a third-party driver or passenger when you or a designated driver on your policy is at-fault for an accident.
Property Damage Liability will pay to repair or replace the property of the other party. It will not replace or repair your own property. In Bellflower, you may have no less than the following limits:
- Bodily Injury: $15,000 per person, up to $30,000 per accident
- Property Damage: $5000 per accident
What other coverage options are available to drivers in Bellflower?
In addition to offering basic liability insurance, auto insurers in California are required by law to offer other types of coverage that will provide you with protection behind the wheel.
All applicants with a vehicle registered in California must be given the option to purchase Uninsured Motorist Coverage and Medical Payments Coverage. While companies do have to offer each of these coverage options to you, you do have the right to reject the coverage in writing. Before you reject protection that can help you, read this brief explanation of how they work:
Medical Payments
Medical Payments coverage is a no-fault coverage that will pay for your medical bills or the medical bills of your passengers when you are injured in a vehicular accident.
Many wonder what the difference is between Med Pay and Medical Insurance, and the answer is that Med Pay is a supplemental form of coverage that will only pay for bills accrued when you are in a covered loss.
If you have health insurance, you may benefit from carrying a minimal amount of medical payments cover to cover your copayments or deductible. If you do not have insurance, carrying a higher limit may be crucial so that you can seek treatment if you ever get injured in your car.
Uninsured Motorist
Did you know that 1 in 7 drivers in Bellflower are uninsured? Based on studies that have been conducted by the Insurance Research Council, 14.7 percent of drivers in California do not comply with the state's financial responsibility laws. Based on the fact that there are approximately 38 million people in the state, this means that about 5.3 million drivers are disobeying the law and could be putting you at-risk.
To protect you from these drivers who do not have insurance, you can purchase Uninsured Motorist Protection. Ranked number 8 on the list of the states with the highest rate of uninsured motorists, officials have passed a law requiring all insurers to offer policyholders this form of protection.
Like Medical Payments, you can reject the coverage if you feel you do not need it.
Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury will pay for your medical bills and other expenses incurred if you are injured in an accident. For this coverage to apply, the party must be uninsured or not have enough coverage to pay for your bills. It may also apply if you are involved in an accident with a hit-and-run driver.
Physical Damage
Bellflower residents are not required to carry physical damage by the state, but as a borrower you may be required to purchase physical damage when your vehicle is leased or financed. A finance company will require you to purchase comprehensive and collision cover, called full coverage, because they have an interest in the vehicle.
They want to be sure that the vehicle will be paid off if it is totaled so that they receive the principal due on your loan. Most lending contracts have an auto insurance requirement written into it.
Comprehensive
Comprehensive is one of the two forms of physical damage coverage. It will pay when your vehicle is damaged due to a fire, theft, or vandalism. The policy will pay up to the fair market value minus your deductible to repair or replace your vehicle. The higher your deductible, the lower your premiums. Comprehensive claims cannot be surcharged in the state of California.
Collision
Collision insurance will pay to repair your vehicle when it is damaged in an accident. It will also pay up to the fair market value of your vehicle minus the deductible. When you decide on a deductible, you must consider your budget now and how much you can afford later down the line if you do file a claim.
Most collision deductibles range between $500 and $1,000.
How Bellflower Car Insurance Rates Are Determined
The average auto insurance expenditure in the state of California is $745.55 per year, but there is a huge variation between the average and what you will pay.
One of the reason why there is such a wide variation is because so many different personal factors will be considered when calculating your rate.
If you do not understand how personal factors play a role in calculating your premiums, then you will never understand why you pay so much more or less than people that you know who also reside in Bellflower.
Why are rating factors important to insurers?
Rates are based strictly on risk. The more risk that is present, the more the driver will ultimately pay for protection on the road. Each rating factor that is considered will represent a different type of risk that increases or decreases the likelihood that a policyholder will file a claim.
This is why insurers have a long list of rating factors and formulas that are used to determine rates. To find the best rates, you should find shop around and do your homework. This will help you identify which companies have rating systems that will benefit you and give you the lowest premiums.
What are the rating factors that can affect your rates?
Generally speaking, all California insurers consider the same rating factors when they are underwriting a policy. The questions that a Bellflower agent asks you during your quote appointment are all asked for a reason. This is why it is crucial to answer all questions as accurately as possible.
Here are some of the factors that will help determine the price of your premiums:
- Driving record and accident history
- How often your drive your vehicle and for what purpose the vehicle is driven
- What zip code your vehicle is primarily parked in and where you live
- The vehicle classification and safety features of the vehicle
- Your age and your gender at the time of application
- Years of experience behind the wheel
- Type of coverage and amount of coverage that you purchase
When you are buying auto insurance in Bellflower it is very important to qualify the insurance company so that you choose a quality provider. Once you check a licensing status, review financial stability, and check reviews, you can then consider price.
To comparison shop when you are in a time crunch, you can use an online rate comparison tool and compare the premiums from top providers in Bellflower. Make sure that have all of the information that you need, and find the most competitive auto insurance rates without wasting your time.