The weather is warming up. That means times for road trips and scenic excursions. Yet, the weather could easily turn bad at a moment’s notice. If severe weather damages your car, then you might need help making repairs. Car insurance usually can help you in these situations. However, you have to have the right coverage. You also need to protect the vehicle as best you can. What are some of the ways you can do so?
Vehicles need protection from severe weather whether they are in the driveway or on the road. Your car insurance is one form of assistance. Still, you’ll need to take other precautions.
Weather Threats to Vehicles
Any time the sky darkens, vehicles come under threat. While you drive, and even while the car sits in the driveway, storms or other severe weather could damage it. Springtime severe weather could pop up almost instantly. You might have very little time to protect the vehicle from the following risks:
- Lightning could strike the vehicle, destroying electrical systems or causing fires
- Hail could strike the vehicle, breaking glass or damaging the exterior
- Airborne debris could collide with the vehicle
- Heavy rain might get inside the vehicle causing water damage
- Debris in the roadway could cause risks of tire damage
It’s easy to see the damage these weather threats might do. They could wind up costing you thousands of dollars in repair costs. Not only that, they might even damage the vehicle beyond repair.
Such accidents could present you with the threat of financial losses that you can’t afford. In these cases, you might want your car insurance to protect you.
How Car Insurance Covers Weather Damage
If your car gets damaged from weather, you might have help through your car insurance.
In most cases, you’ll get help from comprehensive physical damage insurance. This is car insurance that pays for damage that is not related to a car wreck. In most cases, it will cover damage from severe weather, fires, theft, vandalism and more.
Let’s say that during a severe storm, a branch falls on top of your car. There is damage to the glass and the structure. In most cases, your comprehensive insurance will pay to repair the damage.
There are a few limitations to how much help you can get from comprehensive coverage, however.
- If the car is a total loss, the insurance might pay some or all the costs to replace the vehicle. Replacement cost coverage will help you get a new vehicle of equal or lesser value. Actual cash value insurance will only pay the car’s depreciated value at the time of the accident. You can likely benefit more from replacement insurance though it might be more expensive.
- If you have a wreck while driving in a storm, comprehensive insurance might not cover the damage. Instead, if your policy has collision insurance, this coverage will pay for the damage because a wreck caused it.
- All car insurance policies will come with damage deductibles. The deductible is your responsibility to pay before your insurer covers the rest of a claim. For example, you might have a $500 deductible on $2,000 worth of vehicle damage. Therefore, you’ll pay the $500 up front and your insurance will pay the remaining $1,500.
- If you have damage below the deductible cost, you’ll have to pay all damage costs out-of-pocket. In some cases, however, certain damage will not be subject to deductibles. For example, glass damage might have no deductible. So, even if you have a $500 deductible and $300 worth of glass damage, your policy will still cover the glass damage.
As soon as you experience any damage from weather, contact your Georgia insurance agent. They can tell you if you have coverage for the damage. If you have comprehensive insurance, you’ll likely have a great asset available. However, you have to make sure your policy includes comprehensive coverage. Most will not do so automatically.
Protecting Your Car from Weather Damage
We get it. It’s hard to protect a car from storm damage. Still, with a few simple steps, you can do more to safeguard the vehicle.
If you have any hints of weather developing, move your car into your garage or carport. If you don’t have a garage, shelter the car as best you can. However, try not to park it under trees, as limbs that break off in the storm could fall on the car. If you have a car cover, this can also act as a shield.
When driving in severe weather, slow down. Speeding is one of the easiest ways to lose control and crash in bad weather. Also make sure your lights, tires and windshield wipers work correctly. The tires might help the vehicle grip wet roads. The lights and wipers will help you maintain visibility. That way you can go on your way with fewer concerns for your safety.