What Are Reasonable Auto Insurance Coverage Amounts for Military Members?

Not sure how much auto insurance you need? Here’s a military-focused breakdown of reasonable liability, comprehensive, and collision coverage amounts and how to determine what’s right for you.

As a military member, you navigate a world of constant change—new duty stations, unfamiliar roads, growing families, shifting responsibilities, and lengthy deployments. With so much at risk, choosing the right amount of auto insurance isn’t just a box to check; it’s a decision that impacts your family’s financial stability. Understanding your coverage and choosing limits that match your risks lets you move forward with confidence, knowing your family’s financial security is protected.

What Are Reasonable Auto Insurance Coverage Amounts for Military Members?

Because military members face unique financial, geographical, and other challenges, minimum state insurance requirements may not protect you because they are designed for standard civilian risk. This could leave you personally liable for major expenses, because minimum limits may be inadequate for serious accidents, and overseas assignments can require separate local insurance arrangements.

This article will explain the different types of auto insurance coverage, what state legal minimum liability limits mean, how to choose appropriate coverage limits for you and your family, and why you should regularly review and adjust your auto insurance policy to keep you protected from financial loss. 

Understanding the Main Types of Auto Insurance Coverage

Auto insurance includes several types of coverage, each designed to protect you and your family from different financial risks on the road.

Liability insurance

This is mandatory in all states except New Hampshire. It won’t cover damage to your vehicle or your own injuries. It just pays for any damage you cause to others. Liability insurance is comprised of two parts: 

• Bodily Injury (BI): This covers medical treatment and other expenses for people injured in an accident where you were found at fault. This covers:
  • Medical expenses
  • Pain and suffering
  • Lost wages
  • Legal costs for lawsuits filed against you
• Property Damage (PD): This covers costs to fix property damaged by an accident where you were found to be at fault. This may include:
  • Damage to other cars, and property (a home, guardrail, mailbox, etc.)
  • Legal costs for lawsuits filed against you

Collision coverage

Collision coverage is optional and helps to pay to repair or replace your car if it is damaged in an accident. It could involve another car, or hitting a fixed object like a telephone pole, or guardrail. It is important to understand that collision coverage applies no matter who caused the accident. This coverage helps ensure that you don’t have to pay all the repair costs yourself. You would still need to pay your deductible before your insurance kicks in. Here is what collision coverage may pay for:

• Accidents with another vehicle
• Crashes with stationary objects
• Rollover accidents
• Hit-and-run damage

Remember: Collision coverage only covers your car. If you are at fault, your liability insurance will pay for damage to another person’s car or property.

Comprehensive (other than collision) Coverage

This optional coverage will help cover the cost of damages to your car if you are involved in an event not caused by a collision with another vehicle or fixed object. Here are some situations where your comprehensive coverage will kick in:

• Theft
• Vandalism
• Glass breakage (not from a collision)
• Fire
• Weather damage (floods, wind damage, hail)
• Hitting an animal

Pro Tip: If you own an older car that has a low resale/trade-in value, you may want to weigh the cost of keeping comprehensive coverage against what you would get in a payout. This could save you money in the long run. 

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) Coverage

This coverage will protect you against drivers who don’t have insurance or don’t have enough insurance to pay for the damage they cause you. While required in only 20 states and the District of Columbia, it is strongly recommended to protect against uninsured drivers. In some states, you have to actually opt out in writing. Like liability insurance, UM/UIM fall into two categories:

• Uninsured motorist bodily injury (UMBI): This coverage helps pay medical costs and pain and suffering up to your policy limit for you and your passengers if you are hit by an UM/UIM or a hit-and-run driver.
• Uninsured motorist property damage (UMPD): This coverage helps cover these costs (up to your policy limit):
  • Costs to repair your car
  • Expenses if the other driver doesn’t have enough liability PD coverage
  • Damage to your home or property

Want to add UM/UIM Coverage? Here are the steps for buying coverage:

• See if your state mandates UM/UIM coverage
• If not, decide if you want to add them as optional coverage (if allowed)
• If required or want it as an add-on coverage, match limits to your liability BI limits

Personal Injury Protection (PIP)

This protection covers medical expenses and lost wages for you and your passengers if injured in an accident, regardless of who was at fault. No-fault states require PIP, while it’s optional or not offered in other states. PIP may cover:

• Medical bills
• Lost wages
• Household service (childcare, yard work, maid services)
• Disability/rehab costs
• Death benefits (if fatal)

What Is a Fault vs No-fault Accident?

In most states, one party is considered at-fault and must cover the cost for injuries to the other driver and their passengers (via the at-fault’s liability insurance). In no-fault states, medical bills are covered by each driver’s PIP, instead of the at-fault driver’s insurance. See which states are fault or no-fault. 

How Much Do These Types of Insurance Cost?

Here are sample national average costs for these types of insurance:

Coverage Type	Annual Cost	Notes
Liability*	$736	Based on 100/300/100 limits (per person/per accident/property damage)
Comprehensive**	$196	Non-collision damage (theft, weather, animals)
Collision**	$400	Repairs to your vehicle after a crash
Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury (UMBI)***	$70	Covers your injuries if the at-fault driver has no insurance
Underinsured Motorist Bodily Injury (UIMBI)***	$42	Covers your injuries when the at-fault driver’s limits are too low
Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (UMPD)***	$22	Repairs your vehicle if hit by an uninsured driver (where offered)
Underinsured Motorist Property Damage (UIMPD)***	$22	Helps cover property damage when the other driver’s PD limits are insufficient
Personal Injury Protection (PIP)****	$344	Helps cover medical expenses and lost wages, regardless of who was at fault

*MarketWatch Guides: Liability Car Insurance 2026 Guide

**MarketWatch Guides “Comprehensive vs. Collision Auto Insurance”

***The Zebra 2025 “Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage Guide”

****The Zebra 2026 “Understanding Personal Injury Protection Insurance (PIP)”

Recommended Liability Coverage Limits

Now that we know what liability insurance is, and the two parts, bodily injury (BI) and property damage (PD), let’s take a closer look at recommended limits and some situations where military members may want to exceed the minimum limits. 

Auto liability limits are broken down into three numbers that show how much coverage you have per person and per accident. Each state will have its own required minimum auto insurance liability limits. 

For example, if you lived in Maryland, your policy might look like this – 30/60/15

Here is what the numbers mean:

• Bodily injury (BI) liability per person: $30,000 is the maximum amount your insurance company would pay out per person for injuries.
• Bodily injury (BI) liability per accident: $60,000 is the maximum amount your insurer would pay out per accident for injuries.
• Property damage (PD) liability per accident: $15,000 is the maximum amount your insurer would pay out per accident for damage to someone else’s vehicle or property.

What would happen if you were involved in an accident in Maryland?

Case One: You hit another driver’s vehicle, causing them $25,000 in injuries and $10,000 in property damage. Your insurance would pay both amounts because all BI and PD are below your coverage limits per person and per accident.

Case Two: You’re in an accident that was your fault, and you injured the driver and two passengers. Suppose each has $25,000 in injuries. You may think you’re covered because you have $30,000 in BI per person. However, $60,000 is the maximum your insurance policy will cover per accident. Since expenses for injuries totaled $75,000, you would be responsible for the remaining $15,000 out of pocket.

The question you need to ask yourself is: 

“Are state minimum limits reasonable for my situation?” 

The answer is – it depends on your comfort level and the risk you are exposed to. You will have to weigh what is reasonable with what is prudent. 

Let’s look at when state minimum levels may not be enough.

When You Need More Liability Insurance than the State Minimum

Again, each state mandates liability limits, but depending on several factors, such as your income, military circumstances, and net worth, you may want liability insurance higher than the state minimum.

Again, for Maryland, your policy would reflect these coverage totals: 30/60/15

A good rule of thumb is to have the total bodily injury limit (the second number) and the property damage liability limit (the third number) higher than your net worth. 

Not sure how much your net worth is? Simply put, your net worth is your assets (savings, investment portfolio, home equity, cars, valuable collectibles) minus your liabilities (mortgage, car loans, student loans, credit card balances, personal debt).

So, if your net worth is more than $60,000, you will want to increase them to numbers closer to your net worth. If your net worth is substantial, say between $750K and $1M, or if you want to include multiple policies (home, auto, renters, boat), consider taking out umbrella insurance coverage (we cover that policy below). 

Also, there are certain lifestyle risk factors that could warrant higher liability minimums. For example, if you have a swimming pool, trampoline, rental properties, or teenage drivers, you may want to increase your liability limits to between $250K and $500K.

Pro Tip: Both the Insurance Information Institute and Consumer Reports recommend carrying 100/300/100 coverage. If you have significant financial assets, it is recommended you bump that up to 250/500/250. This would prevent an insurance company from draining your savings. According to Compare.com, the difference in premiums between a 30/60/15 policy and a 250/500/250 policy is typically between $10 and $20 per month more than your current premium. The more coverage you get, the better the deal.

Why Military Families May Need Higher Coverage

As a military service member, you face risks that civilians don’t, so your insurance needs may warrant higher or specialized coverage to protect you and your family against risks like frequent and stressful moves, vehicle storage during deployments, underinsurance (not enough liability coverage), and international protection. 

Here are some unique risk factors military families face:

• Frequent PCS moves: This can make keeping continuous, state legal minimum coverage a challenge, and have you frequently driving in unfamiliar and higher-cost states.
• Deployment storage & coverage: If you are deployed or PCS to an overseas assignment, you may need to store your vehicles.
• Protection against underinsurance: Relying on state minimum coverage could leave your family at risk, especially if you have limited financial resources and are hit with high out-of-pocket expenses in an at-fault accident. Consider increasing your liability coverage or getting an umbrella policy.
• Overseas Moves: Insuring your car overseas requires some research and planning. You will need to either get international auto insurance or liability insurance from the host nation.

Pro Tip: Read “How Military Members Can Hack Auto Insurance Rates” to get some tips on mitigating these risk factors.

When Military Families Should Consider Umbrella Insurance

As a military family, you should consider umbrella insurance if your assets exceed your standard auto insurance liability limits, or when there are factors that make you a high-risk (teen drivers, frequent party host, swimming pools, large dogs). This gives you extra protection against big lawsuits. 

You may ask, “What is the difference between high liability auto insurance coverage and umbrella coverage?” A high limit on your auto policy just increases the maximum payout for that specific policy. Umbrella insurance is a separate policy that acts as a blanket over your primary policies (auto, home, renters), providing much higher limits and gap coverage from your auto liability coverage. 

Umbrella policies range from $1-5 million, but typical coverage is $1 million. Coverage can be very affordable with a $1 million policy costing you between $150 and $300 per year, and an extra $50 for each additional $1 million. This cost is in addition to your liability coverage premium. Umbrella coverage is an extra layer of protection that provides you and your family peace of mind, which is priceless.

Review and Adjust Your Coverage

Reviewing your auto insurance policy on a regular basis is critical for military members to ensure you are not paying more than necessary, while still being protected. The best time to review your auto policy is annually, before a PCS move/address change or long-term deployment, or when buying a new car or adding new drivers.

Here are some actions you should take as part of your review:

• Evaluate your assets and ensure that your liability coverage is more than your net worth. If so, consider an umbrella policy. 
• Review state minimum liability requirements and deductibles, especially as part of a PCS move. Assess deductibles to see if you can raise them and lower your premium, especially if you have emergency savings to cover the higher deductible.
• Shop around by comparing top military insurers like USAA and GEICO, and ask about military discounts from other insurers. 
• Leverage policy bundling to save on total premiums and ease policy management.
• If moving overseas, check on international coverage requirements, and arrange for shipping your vehicle (if authorized) and additional insurance if needed.
• Consider signing up for a telematics program to save big on premiums.

Bottom Line

As a military member, your family’s life is constantly in motion and comes with added responsibilities and risks that civilian families don’t have to face. Your auto insurance should reflect that lifestyle. Knowing what the terms in your auto policy mean, assessing and choosing reasonable liability limits, and reviewing your coverage regularly and before every major life change will protect what you’ve built and avoid financial setbacks that result from being underinsured. With the right coverage in place, you and your family will have the freedom to focus on your military mission to serve and protect our country, no matter where the road leads next.