How Much Car Insurance Coverage Do You Need in Pennsylvania?
This is one of those questions where the legal answer and the answer I’d actually give a client are two very different things.
In Pennsylvania, you can legally drive with:
- $15,000 of bodily injury coverage per person
- $30,000 per accident
- $5,000 of property damage
- $5,000 of medical benefits
That’s the legal minimum.
For many Pennsylvania homeowners and families we work with, I think it makes sense to at least discuss significantly higher limits.
At PolicyVisor, that conversation often starts around 250/500/100, strong uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, and possibly an umbrella policy if you own a home or have meaningful assets.
That doesn’t mean those limits are right for everyone. They aren’t.
But it’s a much better conversation than simply assuming the state minimum is enough.
Pennsylvania’s Minimum Limits Are Really Low
Pennsylvania’s 15/30/5 liability limits go all the way back to 1974.
That’s kind of crazy when you think about it.
Cars cost more. Repairs cost more. Medical bills cost more. Even a fairly ordinary accident can turn into a significant claim today.
But Pennsylvania still allows someone to carry only $15,000 of bodily injury liability coverage for one person.
Legally, that meets the requirement.
Realistically, that may not be enough protection for many people.
I usually explain it this way:
The state minimum is a floor, not a recommendation.
What Does 15/30/5 Actually Mean?
Most people don’t know what these numbers mean because, honestly, why would they?
If your policy says 15/30/5, it generally means:
$15,000 per person
That is the maximum your policy can pay for bodily injury to one person, subject to the policy terms.
$30,000 per accident
That is the maximum available for bodily injury to everyone injured in one covered accident.
$5,000 for property damage
That is the amount available for damage you cause to someone else’s vehicle or property.
The $5,000 property damage limit is probably the easiest one to put into perspective.
Go sit in a Wawa parking lot and look around.
How many cars do you think you could replace for $5,000?
Not many.
And you don’t need to total a vehicle anymore to create a $5,000 repair bill. Bumpers, headlights, cameras, sensors, and calibration work can make a relatively minor-looking accident pretty expensive.
What Happens If a Claim Is More Than Your Limit?
Your insurance policy responds according to the coverage and limits you purchased.
If you are legally responsible for damages that exceed those limits, you may be personally responsible for amounts above what the policy pays.
That’s why I get uncomfortable when I see a homeowner carrying minimum liability limits simply to save a few dollars.
Nobody plans on causing a serious accident.
That’s really the point of insurance.
You’re trying to protect yourself from the kind of loss you would have a hard time paying for on your own.
So How Much Liability Coverage Should You Consider?
There isn’t one perfect answer.
A 19-year-old renting an apartment is in a very different financial position than a homeowner with kids, savings, investments, and equity in a house.
For many Pennsylvania homeowners we work with, a discussion often starts around:
- $250,000 bodily injury per person
- $500,000 bodily injury per accident
- $100,000 property damage
You’ll usually see that written as:
250/500/100
Could someone need more? Absolutely.
Could someone reasonably carry less? Sure.
The important thing is that the amount of coverage you carry should make sense for your own financial situation.
If you own a home, have savings, or have other assets, it is usually worth having that conversation rather than automatically choosing the lowest available limit.
Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage Matters Too
This is probably one of the most misunderstood parts of an auto policy.
Liability coverage protects you when you cause injuries to someone else.
Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage can help protect you and your family when another driver causes the accident and either has no insurance or does not have enough insurance.
That matters because the person who hits you could legally be carrying only $15,000 of bodily injury coverage.
If you are seriously injured, $15,000 can disappear very quickly.
For many clients, we discuss carrying strong UM/UIM limits and, when appropriate, matching those limits to the bodily injury liability coverage.
What About Stacking?
Pennsylvania also allows uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage to be stacked.
Without getting too deep into insurance language, stacking can increase the amount of UM/UIM coverage available based on the number of vehicles insured.
For example, if you have two vehicles with $100,000 of stacked UM coverage, you may have access to $200,000 of coverage, depending on the policy and the circumstances of the claim.
I don’t think stacking is something people should waive simply because it makes the quote cheaper.
Understand what you’re giving up first.
Then make the decision.
What About Medical Coverage?
Pennsylvania requires at least $5,000 in first-party medical benefits.
For many clients, I think it makes sense to at least look at higher limits and see what they cost.
Sometimes increasing the medical benefit is relatively inexpensive.
Whether $10,000, $25,000, $100,000, or another amount makes sense depends on your situation, your health insurance, and the rest of your coverage.
This is another area where I wouldn’t automatically leave the limit at the minimum just because that is what appeared on the original quote.
Why Homeowners Often Consider Higher Limits
If you own a house, have savings, investments, rental properties, or other meaningful assets, your liability exposure is different from someone with very little to protect.
That is one reason we commonly discuss higher auto liability limits with homeowners.
It also puts you in a better position to consider a personal umbrella policy.
What Is an Umbrella Policy?
A personal umbrella policy provides an additional layer of liability coverage above policies such as your home and auto insurance.
A common starting point is $1 million.
If you have a serious covered liability claim that exceeds the underlying limits on your home or auto policy, an umbrella may provide additional protection, subject to the terms, conditions, and exclusions of that policy.
For many homeowners, I think umbrella insurance is one of the better values available in insurance.
It can provide a significant amount of additional protection without necessarily adding a huge amount to the overall premium.
Umbrella carriers also typically require certain underlying liability limits on your home and auto policies.
That’s another reason I prefer to build the base coverage correctly first.
Better Coverage Doesn’t Always Cost as Much as People Think
This surprises people.
A lot of people assume moving from minimum liability limits to significantly better coverage is going to make the policy dramatically more expensive.
Sometimes better coverage genuinely costs more.
Sometimes the difference is pretty small.
And sometimes we can move someone to another carrier, improve the coverage, and still lower the overall premium.
We see that enough that I never like to assume what the answer will be until we actually quote it.
Different insurance companies price things differently.
That’s one of the advantages of working with an independent agency. We can compare multiple carriers instead of trying to make one company work for everybody.
Cheapest Isn’t Always Cheapest
Everybody wants to save money on insurance.
That’s usually one of the reasons someone calls us.
But I don’t want to save somebody $300 a year by cutting hundreds of thousands of dollars in liability protection.
That’s not necessarily a good trade.
We try to look at the whole picture.
How much are you paying?
What coverage are you getting?
Can we improve it?
Can we lower the price?
Sometimes we can do both.
Sometimes the better coverage costs a little more.
And sometimes we review someone’s current policy and tell them they are already in a good spot.
That’s fine too.
The goal is to understand what you have, what it protects, and whether it still makes sense.
So, What Should You Carry?
There is no single limit that is right for everyone.
For many Pennsylvania homeowners, though, a coverage discussion may include:
- 250/500 bodily injury liability
- $100,000 property damage
- Strong uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage
- Stacked UM/UIM when appropriate
- More than the minimum $5,000 medical benefit when it makes sense
- Comprehensive and collision coverage based on the vehicle and your financial situation
- A $1 million or greater umbrella policy when there are assets or exposures worth protecting
Those are not universal recommendations.
They are simply the kinds of limits and coverages we often discuss with clients who want more than the minimum level of protection.
If you own a home and you are still carrying 15/30/5 because that is what someone selected years ago, I think it is worth reviewing.
Want Us to Review Your Coverage?
PolicyVisor is an independent insurance agency serving clients throughout Pennsylvania, including Springfield, Delaware County, and the greater Philadelphia area.
If you send us your current declarations page, we can review what you have, explain the coverage in plain English, and compare other options when appropriate.
We’re not simply trying to find the lowest number on the screen.
We want to help you find a good balance between coverage and price.
And if what you already have makes sense, we’ll tell you that too.
Written by Bob Kelly, Agency Principal at PolicyVisor, with over 20 years of insurance experience
Disclaimer
This article is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as individualized insurance, legal, financial, or tax advice. Coverage needs vary based on individual circumstances. Insurance coverage is determined solely by the terms, conditions, exclusions, endorsements, and limits of the policy actually issued. Nothing on this website binds, modifies, extends, or guarantees insurance coverage. Please speak with a licensed insurance professional regarding your specific insurance needs and consult an appropriate legal, tax, or financial professional when those issues are involved.
