Collision vs. Comprehensive Coverage: What Each One Pays For

Collision coverage pays to repair or replace your car when it hits another vehicle or an object, or when it rolls over. Comprehensive coverage pays for damage from almost everything else, such as theft, hail, fire, flood, vandalism, falling objects and hitting an animal. Both pay up to your car’s actual cash value, minus your deductible.

Neither one is required by state law, but if you have a car loan or lease, your lender or leasing company almost always requires both. Together with liability, they make up what people usually mean by “full coverage.”

Which Coverage Pays? Common Situations

What Collision Coverage Pays For

The NAIC’s auto coverage guide says, “Collision coverage pays for damage to your car from a collision with another car, an object, a pothole, or flipping over.” It applies whether or not you caused the crash. New York’s Department of Financial Services says your own insurer pays “without regard to fault.”

If another driver caused the accident, you can file with their insurer instead and skip your deductible. Or you can use your collision coverage, pay your deductible, and let your insurer try to recover the cost from the other driver’s insurer. If it succeeds, you may get your deductible back.

What Comprehensive Coverage Pays For

Comprehensive is sometimes called “other than collision” coverage. The NAIC says it “pays for damage to your car that’s not caused by a collision (wreck or crash), like theft, hail, windstorm, flood, fire, or impact by an animal.” The NAIC’s consumer guide adds that it “also will cover broken glass, such as windshield damage.”

Hitting an animal surprises some people. Even though your car hits something, animal strikes fall under comprehensive, not collision. RateFrog’s guides to cracked windshield coverage and hail damage coverage cover two of the most common comprehensive claims.

Gray Areas

• Glass broken in a crash. GEICO, for example, lists “glass breakage not resulting from a collision” under comprehensive, which suggests glass damaged in a crash is usually handled as part of the collision claim.
• Hit-and-run damage. GEICO says its collision coverage covers hit-and-run accidents. Some states also let uninsured motorist coverage pay. In Texas, for example, UM covers hit-and-run accidents but requires actual physical contact with the other vehicle.

What Neither Coverage Pays For

• Other people’s cars and property. Your liability coverage handles that. See RateFrog’s guide to liability limits for how much it pays.
• Injuries. Collision and comprehensive cover damage to your car. Injuries fall under liability, medical payments, personal injury protection or uninsured motorist coverage.
• Breakdowns and wear and tear. California’s Department of Insurance says comprehensive “does not cover mechanical breakdown, normal wear and tear, or maintenance.”
• Your belongings. Oregon’s insurance regulator says auto policies “generally do not cover personal property stolen from your vehicle or damaged in an accident.”
• Intentional damage. Colorado’s Division of Insurance says, “There is no coverage for intentional acts.”

How Collision and Comprehensive Payouts Work

Both coverages pay to repair your car or, if it’s totaled, pay its actual cash value. The Texas Department of Insurance defines actual cash value as “the cost to replace your car, minus depreciation.” The NAIC notes that with an older car, repair costs “can quickly exceed the worth of the car,” and the insurer will total it and pay what it was worth instead of fixing it.

Your deductible comes off the top. The Texas Department of Insurance gives this example: “if you have a $1,500 collision claim and your policy has a $500 collision deductible, the insurance company will deduct $500 from your claim amount and pay you $1,000.” RateFrog’s article on how GEICO determines a total loss walks through the total-loss process at one insurer.

If you owe more on your car than it’s worth, the actual cash value payout may not cover your loan. That’s the gap that gap insurance is designed to fill.

Are Collision and Comprehensive Required?

Not by any state. The NAIC’s consumer guide says collision “is optional and not required by law,” and that “You are not required by law to carry comprehensive coverage.”

Lenders are another story. The Texas Department of Insurance says that if you still owe money on your car, “your lender will require you to have collision and comprehensive” coverage. The NAIC says you typically must keep both until you pay off your loan, and leasing companies generally require them too. Your loan or lease contract spells out exactly what you need. In Texas, if you drop these coverages on a financed car, the TDI warns that your lender will buy coverage that “is expensive and protects only the lender” and add it to your loan payment.

How Much Do Collision and Comprehensive Cost?

The NAIC’s Auto Insurance Database Report gives national averages per insured vehicle for 2023, its most recent data year:

Your price depends on your car, where you live, your deductible and your driving record, and the NAIC cautions that comparisons between states should be treated carefully. Most drivers buy both coverages anyway. The Insurance Information Institute says 80% of insured drivers buy comprehensive and 77% buy collision, based on 2023 NAIC data.

When Dropping Them Might Make Sense

Several state regulators suggest reconsidering these coverages on older cars. California’s Department of Insurance says to “Think about dropping comprehensive and/or collision coverage on an older car,” and New York’s Department of Financial Services says you may reduce costs “by eliminating these coverages on older vehicles.”

The Insurance Information Institute offers a rule of thumb: “If your car is worth less than 10 times the premium, purchasing the coverage may not be cost effective.” Here’s a hypothetical example. If your car is worth $3,000 and collision and comprehensive together cost $400 a year, 10 times the premium is $4,000, which is more than the car is worth.

Before you drop either one, think about the trade-offs:

• You’d pay for repairs or a replacement car yourself after a crash, theft or storm.
• If you still have a loan or lease, you likely can’t drop them.
• Add-ons like rental reimbursement usually require comprehensive and collision, so you’d lose those too. See RateFrog’s guide to rental reimbursement coverage.
• You could keep comprehensive and drop collision, or raise your deductibles instead, if you want a middle ground.

For a look at how these coverages fit with liability, see our guide to minimum vs. full coverage, and RateFrog’s overview of auto insurance types. To decide what to carry overall, see how much car insurance you need.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is “Full Coverage” the Same as Collision and Comprehensive?

Not exactly. GEICO says, “There is no standard definition of ‘full coverage.'” People typically use it to mean liability plus collision and comprehensive. Check your declarations page to see exactly what you have.

Does Comprehensive Cover Hitting a Deer?

Yes. Hitting an animal is typically covered by comprehensive, not collision.

Does Collision Cover My Car If the Other Driver Was at Fault?

Yes. You can use your collision coverage and pay your deductible, and your insurer may try to recover its costs from the other driver’s insurer. You can also file directly with the at-fault driver’s insurer, which doesn’t involve your deductible.

Do Collision and Comprehensive Have Separate Deductibles?

Usually. The Insurance Information Institute says each is generally sold with a separate deductible, and Oregon’s regulator notes that most policies have lower deductibles for comprehensive than for collision.

Sources

• NAIC: What You Should Know About Auto Insurance Coverage
• NAIC: Auto Insurance Consumer Guide
• NAIC: Consumer Shopping Tool for Auto Insurance (PDF)
• NAIC: 2022/2023 Auto Insurance Database Report (PDF)
• Texas Department of Insurance: Auto Insurance Guide
• California Department of Insurance: Automobile Insurance Guide
• New York Department of Financial Services: Auto Insurance
• Oregon Division of Financial Regulation: Auto Insurance FAQs
• Colorado Division of Insurance: Auto Insurance
• Insurance Information Institute: Nine Ways to Lower Your Auto Insurance Costs
• Insurance Information Institute: Facts and Statistics, Auto Insurance
• GEICO: What Does Collision Insurance Cover?
• GEICO: Full Coverage Car Insurance