South Carolina Auto Insurance Coverage Guide

Choosing car insurance is about protecting your future without wrecking your monthly budget.

There is no perfect one-size-fits-all insurance policy. The right coverage depends on your finances, your vehicle, your risk tolerance, and what you could afford to pay out of pocket after a crash.

Insurance policies are full of terms most people do not use every day — liability, UM, UIM, MedPay, PIP, collision, comprehensive, and GAP. Once you understand what each coverage actually does, it becomes much easier to decide what you need, what you can skip, and where your money is best spent.

In South Carolina, liability coverage and uninsured motorist coverage are the only two coverages the law requires you to carry. Everything else is optional, although your lender or leasing company may require collision and comprehensive coverage if your vehicle is financed or leased.

Liability Coverage

Liability coverage is the coverage that applies when you cause a wreck and someone else is hurt or their property is damaged. It may pay for the other person’s medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, vehicle damage, and other property damage.

Every automobile insurance policy in South Carolina must have at least $25,000 in liability coverage for bodily injuries to one person, $50,000 per wreck for bodily injuries, and $25,000 for property damage. This is commonly called 25/50/25 coverage. See S.C. Code Ann. § 38-77-140.

There are several reasons you may want more than minimum coverage.

First, higher limits may help protect you financially. If you injure someone else or damage someone else’s property, they are not required to accept your policy limits as full compensation. If you cause catastrophic injuries or damage valuable property, you can be sued and possibly court-ordered to pay more than your insurance covers. Parents should also remember that, in some circumstances, they can be sued for injuries or damage caused by their minor child.

You may also want more than minimum liability coverage so you can increase your UM and UIM limits to protect yourself if you are in a wreck that was someone else’s fault. In South Carolina, you generally cannot insure yourself for more than you insure others, so your UM and UIM limits cannot be higher than your liability limits.

Whether you need more than the minimum depends on what you have to protect. Higher limits may make sense if you own a home, have savings or other assets, have significant earning potential, or have a teen driver. On the other hand, if you have little income and few assets, minimum limits may be a reasonable choice.

Uninsured Motorist Coverage (UM)

Uninsured Motorist coverage, or UM, protects you if you are injured by a driver who does not have insurance. It may also apply if you are the victim of a hit-and-run accident and the driver cannot be identified.

Like liability coverage, South Carolina requires drivers to carry minimum UM limits of $25,000 per person for bodily injury, $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, and $25,000 for property damage. See S.C. Code Ann. § 38-77-150.

In South Carolina, your UM limits are tied to your liability limits. That means if you want more protection from uninsured drivers, you will need to increase your liability coverage too. You can carry less UM than liability, but that is usually not a good idea. After all, if you have decided you need more than the minimum to protect someone else, you probably want the same level of protection for yourself.

To control costs, it may be better to increase your deductible before reducing coverage. Raising a deductible may lower your premium while keeping the same protection in place, as long as you could realistically pay that deductible if something happened.

Underinsured Motorist Coverage (UIM)

Underinsured Motorist coverage, or UIM, applies when the at-fault driver has insurance, but not enough to fully compensate you for your injuries and damages.

South Carolina does not require you to buy UIM, but your insurance company must offer it. See S.C. Code Ann. § 38-77-160.

Although UIM is optional, it is worth serious consideration. Many drivers carry only minimum liability limits. A single hospital visit with X-rays or a CT scan can cost several thousand dollars. If you are seriously injured, the at-fault driver’s coverage may run out long before your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering are fully covered.

UIM may also help with property damage when the at-fault driver’s insurance is not enough. Property damage can include more than your vehicle, such as electronics, tools, equipment, or other personal property in the car. Read the fine print because exclusions, limits, and deductibles may apply.

Read more about UIM here: https://www.palmettostateinjurylawyers.com/blog/what-is-underinsured-motorist-coverage-and-why-you-might-need-it-more-than-you-think

Medical Payments Coverage / PIP

Medical Payments coverage, or MedPay, and Personal Injury Protection, or PIP, are optional coverages that may help pay expenses after a crash regardless of who caused it. See S.C. Code Ann. § 38-77-144

MedPay usually helps with medical bills. Depending on the policy, PIP may also provide benefits for lost wages and certain essential services.

One reason MedPay/PIP can be so valuable is that it usually pays in addition to liability, UM, or UIM coverage. In other words, it is not normally subtracted from your injury settlement. That can make it one of the best values on your policy.

For many drivers, especially those without health insurance or with high deductibles, MedPay or PIP can be one of the most practical coverages to consider. Liability, UM, and UIM coverage usually reimburse you later as part of an injury claim. They do not pay for medical care up front. If you are uninsured, underinsured, or living paycheck to paycheck, MedPay or PIP may be the only way to afford the care you need right after a wreck.

Collision Coverage

Collision coverage helps pay to repair or replace your vehicle after a wreck that was your fault or when your vehicle is damaged in a single-car accident.

Without collision coverage, you may have no insurance available to repair or replace your vehicle if you caused the wreck or if no other driver is responsible.

South Carolina law does not require collision coverage. However, if your vehicle is financed or leased, your lender or leasing company will usually require it. See S.C. Code Ann. § 38-77-280.

Because collision claims are directly tied to driving behavior, experience and driving habits should factor into your decision. You should also consider the age and value of your vehicle, who drives it, and how much you could afford to pay to fix your car tomorrow if you had to.

A good rule of thumb is to choose the highest deductible you could comfortably pay tomorrow.

Comprehensive Coverage

Comprehensive coverage helps pay for damage to your vehicle caused by things other than a wreck. This may include hail, theft, vandalism, fire, flooding, falling objects, or striking an animal.

South Carolina law does not require comprehensive coverage. However, if your vehicle is financed or leased, your lender or leasing company will usually require it. See S.C. Code Ann. § 38-77-280.

When deciding whether to keep comprehensive coverage, consider your vehicle’s value, your deductible, and how easily you could replace the vehicle if something happened to it.

Choosing a deductible is really about cash flow. If something happened and you could comfortably pay a higher deductible, there may be no reason to pay extra every month for a lower one. Instead, you can save the premium difference and build an emergency fund. On the other hand, if you are living paycheck to paycheck, a higher deductible is riskier. If your vehicle is not drivable and you cannot quickly come up with the deductible, the problem can snowball into something much bigger — missed work, lost income, or even job trouble.

Remember - Not every vehicle on your policy needs the same coverage. If an older vehicle gets a dent, cracked bumper, or other cosmetic damage, you may not repair it anyway. In that situation, it may make more sense to save the premium instead of paying for comprehensive coverage.

Newer vehicles and financed vehicles are different. Lenders usually require comprehensive coverage, but you may still want to consider a higher deductible.

GAP Coverage

Car replacement assistance, sometimes called GAP coverage, is critical if you owe more on your loan or lease than the vehicle is worth. This is often the case if you bought a newer vehicle, financed with little or no money down, have a long loan term, or are otherwise upside down on the loan.

GAP coverage will payoff your loan or lease, so you aren’t left holding the bad.

Compare the price from your lender with the price from your insurance company. The coverage may also work differently, so compare the cost, limits, and cancellation/refund rules before choosing.

Other Optional Coverages

Your policy may also offer rental reimbursement, roadside assistance, funeral benefits, wage-loss benefits, or other optional extras.

Some of these coverages can be helpful. Others may duplicate benefits you already have from other sources. For example, you may already have roadside assistance through AAA, a credit card, a vehicle warranty, or another membership.

Focus on coverage that protects your finances now and in the future, not simply adding every option available.

Stacking Coverage

In some cases, you may be able to combine coverage from more than one vehicle to increase the amount available after a wreck. This is called stacking.

Stacking can be complicated. It depends on the policy, the vehicles, the insureds, and the facts of the crash. If you are seriously injured, it is worth having an attorney review all available insurance coverage.

Final Thought

Insurance is not about buying every coverage available. It is about protecting what you have worked hard to build while managing your cash flow.

The right policy should protect you from the risks you cannot afford to take without wrecking your monthly budget.

Need Help After a Car Wreck?

If you were injured in a South Carolina car wreck, understanding the available insurance coverage is an important first step. Palmetto State Injury Lawyers can help you sort through the policies and explain what coverage may apply.

More information to help you understand what coverage may be available after a car wreck is available here: https://www.palmettostateinjurylawyers.com/post/how-much-is-my-case-worth-the-answer-depends-on-how-much-coverage-is-available

If you have questions about what insurance coverage may apply, you can call the office at (843) 823-6237 or reach Dana directly by call or text on her cell phone at (843) 330-7687.