Collision vs. Comprehensive Car Insurance
Collision and comprehensive insurance are two types of auto insurance coverages. They are not legally required by any state, but you have to have them if you have a loan or lease. They pay for the cost to repair any damage to your car in a variety of situations.
Collision coverage pays for damage to your car should you hit another vehicle or an object. Comprehensive coverage pays for theft and any damage due to (almost) everything else, like wildfires or hail. They work hand in hand to cover you for most types of damage to your car.
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What is comprehensive insurance?
Comprehensive car insurance pays for damages caused by things outside your control.
These are sometimes referred to as "acts of God." For example, an "act of God" can include damage due to a tree branch falling on your car. Since you have no control over when or why a tree branch would fall on your car, this kind of accident would be covered under your comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive coverage also pays for theft. If your car is stolen, comprehensive covers the cost to replace your car or to repair any damage if it's recovered.
Types of damages covered by comprehensive auto insurance
- Natural disasters, including storms, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes and hailstorms
- Fire, civil commotions and explosions
- Vandalism and theft
- Damage from impacts with animals, such as a deer
- Broken or shattered windows or windshield
- Falling objects
- Acts of terrorism
Comprehensive insurance usually comes with a deductible. This is the amount you have to pay before your coverage kicks in. For example, say you have a $500 deductible. If your car is damaged in a hailstorm and the damage costs $900 to repair, you would be responsible for $500 and your insurance company would cover the remaining $400.
What are the benefits of comprehensive coverage?
The main benefit of comprehensive coverage is that it can provide peace of mind that damage to your car is covered even in non-collision scenarios. This lets you repair the damage or replace your car if it isn't repairable.
Keep in mind that because of your deductible, comprehensive usually isn't beneficial for minor damage, like a small dent or minor vandalism.
For instance, say a vandal keys your car and the repair costs $600. If your comprehensive coverage has a $1,000 deductible, it won't pay for any of the repairs. That's why agents usually recommend that you carry a lower comprehensive deductible, like $100 or $250. Comprehensive claims are often smaller than collision claims, so a lower deductible gives you more of an opportunity to take advantage of your coverage.
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What is collision insurance?
Collision coverage pays for damage to your car when you get into a crash.
This includes a collision with another vehicle or an object, such as sliding on ice into a tree.
Types of damage covered by collision auto insurance
- You crash into another car, or another car crashes into you while you're parked
- You drive into a stationary object, such as a tree, streetlight or pole
- You crash into a ditch or a pothole
- Your car flips over
- A hit-and-run, if you can't use uninsured motorist coverage
Like comprehensive insurance, collision coverage has a deductible, which is the amount you have to pay before your insurance starts to pay for the damage. You'll set this amount when you buy your policy. A higher deductible means lower monthly premiums.
What are the benefits of collision insurance?
The main benefit of collision insurance is that you won't have to pay for high repair costs after an accident.
Collision insurance will also pay for damage to your car if you're in a crash but can't get the other driver to pay — whether you're in a hit and run, or if the other driver simply stops responding to your calls after the crash occurs.
If you carry collision insurance, you can typically start the repair process very soon after a crash. If you weren't at fault in the accident, using your own collision insurance is a way to get your car fixed faster than waiting on another driver's insurance to pay. But keep in mind you have to pay your deductible first. When the other driver's insurance officially decides they were at fault, your deductible will be reimbursed.
This also lets you deal with your own insurance company, which can sometimes make things easier, because you have a history with them.
When should you drop comprehensive and collision insurance?
While there is no rule, you may want to consider dropping comprehensive and collision insurance when the value of your car and its replacement parts is about the same as the cost of your premiums and deductible.
For example, if the annual cost of your comprehensive and collision insurance is $400 and your deductible is $600, you could save money by dropping them if your car is worth $1,000 or less. Just make sure you have the money to repair or replace your car yourself before you take the coverage off.
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What is the difference between collision vs. comprehensive?
The key difference between collision versus comprehensive coverage is the driver's control over the car accident.
- Collision insurance typically covers events within a motorist's control or when another vehicle collides with your car.
- Comprehensive coverage generally falls under "acts of God or nature," which are typically out of your control. These can include scenarios such as a spooked deer, a heavy hailstorm or a carjacking.
The aftermath of a hurricane is a good example of the important differences between collision and comprehensive. Both of these scenarios could easily happen after a heavy storm:
- A heavy tree branch falls on your car, or
- You swerve to avoid a falling tree branch and wind up crashing into a tree.
In the first event, you had no control over the tree branch falling on your car. This kind of accident would get reimbursed under your comprehensive coverage. In the second situation, you were driving the car and swerved into the tree, which makes it a collision, which means collision insurance pays for the damages.
Collison vs. comprehensive when you hit an object
The line between collision and comprehensive can be blurry, sometimes. That's especially true when you think about hitting objects.
For example, if you run into a stationary object like a construction barricade, that's collision. When an object isn't moving, it's generally within your control to avoid it. But if a stoplight falls on your car, whether your car is parked or not, that's comprehensive.
In some cases, it's not clear whether a claim will fall under your comprehensive or collision coverage, and it takes a claims adjuster to decide which is more appropriate. Say that a bucket falls off a truck in front of you and hits your car. The bucket would likely be considered a falling object, which means the damage would be covered by comprehensive insurance.
But the case could be made that you ran into the bucket, especially if it had been sitting in the road for a while or you saw it fall from a distance and didn't take action to avoid it. In that case, the damage could be considered a collision loss.
Do you need collision and comprehensive insurance?
Collision and comprehensive insurance ensure you won't be on the hook for any costly car damage in a crash or other incident, so it's usually a good idea to have both.
If you have a lease or loan on your car, you'll likely be required to have collision and comprehensive insurance. Your lender wants to protect their investment and make sure you have enough money to repair the vehicle if it's damaged.
What if I only get comprehensive insurance?
Sometimes it makes sense to get just comprehensive and not collision insurance, even if your car is not valuable. Comprehensive covers you for a lot more things than collision coverage does, including theft.
No matter what your car is worth, having it stolen is a major inconvenience, especially if you depend on it to get to work every day. Even if your car isn't worth much, the money from an insurance payout can help you replace it.
Comprehensive insurance is generally quoted at no more than $200 per year, so it's often a good value even for older cars.
However, only 3% of drivers who have comprehensive insurance make a claim in a given year, so keep that in mind when deciding whether or not to add that coverage to your policy.
How much does collision and comprehensive coverage cost?
Across 10 of the most popular vehicles in America, collision coverage costs $1,969 per year and comprehensive coverage costs $164 for new vehicles.
In general, the cost of collision coverage is comparable to liability coverage, while comprehensive is about a tenth as expensive as liability protection.
Comparing quotes from multiple insurance companies can get you more affordable car insurance rates.
Cost of liability, collision and comprehensive coverages
Vehicle | Liability | Coll. | Comp. | Total cost of full coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toyota Camry | $1,986 | $1,939 | $185 | $4,110 |
| Honda Accord | $1,644 | $2,304 | $168 | $4,116 |
| Honda Civic | $1,662 | $2,029 | $131 | $3,822 |
| Nissan Altima | $1,704 | $2,043 | $177 | $3,924 |
| Toyota Corolla | $1,800 | $1,875 | $153 | $3,828 |
| Honda CR-V | $1,596 | $1,522 | $146 | $3,264 |
| Ford Escape | $1,668 | $1,622 | $118 | $3,408 |
| Ford F-150 | $1,704 | $1,569 | $189 | $3,462 |
| Chevrolet Silverado | $1,986 | $2,696 | $184 | $4,866 |
| Ram 1500 | $1,716 | $2,086 | $188 | $3,990 |
How many drivers have comprehensive insurance?
77% of drivers have comprehensive insurance, but the share of drivers who have this coverage varies by state. Including comprehensive insurance on your policy can be particularly important if you live somewhere with severe weather or high crime rates, especially if you park outside, because it protects your vehicle from things such as natural disasters or theft.
States with the largest percent of drivers with comprehensive coverage
State | Drivers with comprehensive coverage |
|---|---|
| New Hampshire | 93% |
| Massachusetts | 91% |
| Connecticut | 87% |
| Florida | 84% |
| Illinois | 84% |
Drivers in coastal states especially benefit from comprehensive coverage, which covers damage to your car from hurricanes, tropical storms, flooding and Nor'easters.
States with the lowest percent of drivers with comprehensive coverage
State | Drivers with comprehensive coverage |
|---|---|
| New Mexico | 62% |
| Wyoming | 65% |
| Montana | 65% |
| Oklahoma | 67% |
| Arkansas | 68% |
Despite the surprisingly low share of drivers in these states with comprehensive coverage compared to the rest of the country, Oklahoma has an extremely high incidence of tornadoes, and Arkansas is at risk from severe weather including heavy storms. New Mexico, Wyoming and Montana are subject to wildfire risk as well.
Same goes for California, Texas and Louisiana. These are some of the most notable states for hurricane risk and other natural disasters yet only an average of 72% of drivers across all three states have comprehensive coverage.
Number of drivers with comprehensive coverage by state
Despite the many types of risks in many states — hurricanes, flooding, thunderstorms, fires — roughly one fifth of drivers have chosen to skip comprehensive insurance. If you have a valuable car and are in an at-risk area for natural disasters, consider comprehensive insurance to protect against unforeseen risks of damage to your car.
Rank | State | Share of drivers with comprehensive coverage |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Hampshire | 93.3% |
| 2 | Massachusetts | 90.7% |
| 3 | Connecticut | 87.4% |
| 4 | Florida | 84.2% |
| 5 | Illinois | 84.2% |
| 6 | Pennsylvania | 84.0% |
| 7 | Michigan | 83.9% |
| 8 | Maine | 83.7% |
| 9 | District of Columbia | 83.4% |
| 10 | Maryland | 83.2% |
| 11 | New York | 82.9% |
| 12 | Washington | 82.8% |
Frequently asked questions
What is collision insurance?
Collision insurance is a type of coverage that pays for damage to your own car when you get in a crash. It will pay out even if you're the at-fault party. Collision insurance will not pay for anything else, like damage to someone else's car or medical bills. That coverage comes from other parts of your policy.
What is comprehensive insurance?
Comprehensive coverage pays to repair damage to your car as a result of anything that's not a collision. For example, comprehensive would pay for vandalism or hail damage. Comprehensive also covers theft.
Do I need collision and comprehensive coverages?
Collision and comprehensive are not required by law, so you don't need to buy them to register your car. However, nearly all car financing companies require them for a lease or loan. You might want to consider both coverages if your car is worth more than $3,000 or is less than 10 years old, or if you would not be able to afford a new car if yours were destroyed.
How much are collision coverage and comprehensive coverages?
How much you'll pay for collision and comprehensive depends on what car you drive, your deductible and your driving history. In general, you can expect to pay about the same amount for collision as for a liability-only policy, while comprehensive is about 10% as expensive. So if a liability-only policy costs $100 per month, adding just collision would bring the total cost up to $200. If you wanted to then add comprehensive too, the total cost would be $210 per month.
Methodology
To understand how adding collision and comprehensive coverage impacts car insurance rates, ValuePenguin collected rates for four coverage profiles in New York state:
- Liability only
- Liability and comprehensive
- Liability and collision
- Full coverage (liability, collision and comprehensive)
For each coverage profile, ValuePenguin's experts gathered sample rates from four major insurers for 10 of the best-selling vehicles in the country. All sample quotes are for a 30-year-old man in New York with no recent incidents on his record.
Editorial Note: The content of this article is based on the author's opinions and recommendations alone. It has not been previewed, commissioned or otherwise endorsed by any of our network partners.
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