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It is important for drivers not just to have auto insurance (after all, it is a requirement in all 50 states), but to understand what it is. Here is more or less a comprehensive rundown of the different kinds of car insurance policies.

If there is such a thing as the most common coverage in car insurance, it would be liability coverage. This coverage helps in covering expenses and liability when an accident occurs and the driver is at fault. The money will be given to the people the driver hits. People inside the car of the driver will not be covered in this kind of coverage. The umbrella liability coverage can be broken down to two: BIL and property damage liability.

BIL, also known as bodily injury liability coverage, as its name alludes to, pays for medical expenses only and not for any damages to property. The parties covered in a BIL coverage, meaning the people whose medical bills will be paid for, are the people who got injuries in a crash wherein the driver is at fault. BIL policies are often presented in numbers such as '100/300' or '20/50'. The first figure denotes the maximum amount in dollars that the insurance will pay for the injuries of a single person, while the second figure represents the maximum amount the policy will shoulder for all injuries of all the passengers of the other vehicle that the driver's car crashed into. Thus, in a 20/50 policy, one 'victim' will be paid $20,000, while everyone in the car the driver hit will get $50,000 all in all for their injuries.

On the other hand, property damage liability pays for any damage experienced by the other car if a driver, during an accident, is the one at fault. Together with the BIL, property damage usually adds a third number in an auto insurance policy. So, for example, if the earlier example, 20/50 has an additional '10', making it 20/50/10, the '10' stands for $10,000 that will be paid to the other car the driver hit. The amount to be given will cover only the damages to the vehicle, not the medical bills of the passenger(s) of the other party, as the latter should be covered already by BIL. BIL and property damage liability are usually packaged together.

While the policies discussed above protect or award money to the other party that the driver hits if he or she is at fault, are there policies that protect the driver himself or herself (as well as his or her car)? Of course, there are four policies that protect or award money to the driver whether or not he or she is the one at fault.

PIP or Personal Injury Protection covers the medical expenses of the driver and his or her passenger(s) after an accident occurs. Any missed work days may also be covered. Uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage helps the driver if he or she is the one hit, and the other party does not have any insurance, or only has minimal coverage. Meanwhile, collusion auto insurance covers damage incurred by the car of the driver, also awarded after an accident. Lastly, comprehensive insurance covers costs of a driver's car if it gets damage by something other than an accident (theft or natural disaster, for example).