Should I purchase a duductible for my 98 toyota Rav 4?

I have always paid for my insurance but it has always been something my parents picked out, but recently I went out and purchased my own plan.

Im 25, and purchased Gieco insurance, its going to save me over 300 bucks a year but the main reason for the drop in price was that I do not have a deductible for my car. And from my understanding If i am at fault, whether I crash my car or get in an accident and i am at fault my insurance will not cover anything for my car, and that kind of scares me.

At the same time my car is not worth much and it does not make sense to to pay a deductible if I total my car, when I could just go out and buy a new one. But what if I run off the road and do a 1000 bucks of damage to my car but its not totaled?

On Kelly's Blue book my car is valued in at 1800-2200
Can you please describe the meaning of deductible?
Should I put a deductible on my insurance plan?
How much should my deductible be?

Stupid Flanders

In reading this, I don't think you have an accurate understanding of what a deductible is.

In regards to auto insurance, a deductible is a specific amount that you pay, out of pocket, for collision or comprehensive damage before the insurance company pays anything.

For example, if you have a $250 deductible, and you get into an accident that causes $1000 worth of damage to your car, you pay the first $250 and the insurance company would pay the remaining $750.
If the damage is under $250, then you should not claim it because you would have to pay it all out of pocket.

Based on this logic, the higher your deductible (your out of pocket expense), the lower your premiums will be (the risk for the insurance company is lower).

For vehicle worth 2200, you should have liability coverage only, which would not cover your vehicle.
Buying as much as you can afford would be best in case you are at fault in an accident.

David W

You can't "buy" a deductible, you buy insuance WITH a deductible on the collision and comprehensive (fire/theft). If your car is damaged by fire/ theft, etc., the company will cut you a check for the estimate less your deductible; same thing for an accident if you're at fault. (It the other driver is at fault and has insurance, his insurance should pay the whole thing. If he/she has no insuarnce, your uninsured motorist should pay it, again with a deductible.)

With the value of your car so low, I wouldn't even carry comp/collision, since the deductible is usually at least $250, a large proportion of its value. If it's finance, though, you may have to carry those coverages to keep the bank happy.

calipink22

If your car is only valued at $2,200 at the most then it's really not worth it to carry comprehensive or collision coverage. Keep in mind that adjusters do not use KBB to determine the value of your car. So the figure you received from KBB is inaccurate for auto insurance. In most cases, the value is less than what KBB states. It's not worth the extra premium to carry full coverage. If you decide that you do want the extra coverage then choose a low deductible such as $250 or $500. It'll be higher premium but at least if you total the car you'll get more from the insurance company.

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