What Is Bodily Injury Liability Coverage?

Bodily injury liability pays for injuries you cause to other people when you are at fault in a crash. That includes medical bills, income they lose while recovering, and money a court may award for lasting pain or disability. If they sue you, it also covers your legal defense, including attorney fees. Your insurance company pays those costs up to your coverage limit. Costs above your limit come out of your own pocket.

Here's what that looks like in a real crash. Let's say you run a red light and hit another car. The other driver breaks their arm, misses six weeks of work and ends up with $38,000 in medical bills and lost wages. Your insurer handles the claim and pays up to your per-person limit. If the other driver sues you, your insurer also hires and pays for your attorney.

What bodily injury liability pays for:

• Medical bills: Doctor visits, hospital stays, surgery, rehab and follow-up care for the other driver and their passengers after a crash you caused.
• Lost wages: Money the injured person loses because they can't work while they recover. This includes long-term income loss if their injuries keep them from returning to their job.
• Pain and suffering: Extra money a court can award when injuries change someone's quality of life or cause lasting pain.
• Legal defense: If the injured person sues you, your insurer pays for your lawyer, court costs and any settlement negotiations up to your coverage limit.
• Settlements: Payments up to your coverage limit for anyone hurt in a crash you caused, including passengers in the other car.
  

What bodily injury liability does NOT pay for:

• Damage to your own car. That is what collision coverage is for.
• Your own injuries if you caused the crash and have no PIP or MedPay on your policy. If the other driver caused the crash, their bodily injury liability pays for your injuries instead.
• Injuries caused by an uninsured driver who hits you. Uninsured motorist coverage covers that.
• Costs above your coverage limit. You pay those yourself.
• Damage you cause on purpose.

Bodily injury liability is sold together with property damage liability as a single liability policy. The national average for a liability-only policy is $67 per month, but the cheapest carriers run significantly lower. A 40-year-old with a clean record pays $43 per month at GEICO and $67 at the national average — a $288-per-year difference for identical coverage. That difference in price widens with violations or poor credit.

Raising your bodily injury limits from 25/50 to 100/300 adds $15 to $30 per month at most carriers in our analysis. That is a small increase for much more protection. Your actual rate depends on your age, driving record, credit score and state. See our full cheapest liability insurance guide for rates by state, age and driving record.

Almost every state requires bodily injury liability coverage. New Hampshire is the only state that doesn't require any auto insurance at all. Florida is the only state that requires auto insurance but doesn't require bodily injury liability specifically. We recommend all drivers carry bodily injury liability to protect their assets. See our state minimum car insurance requirements guide for the exact rules in your state.

It's worth knowing that if you own a home, a court judgment above your bodily injury limit can attach to your home equity. Wages can be garnished in most states as well. If you rent and have minimal assets, collecting a judgment above your limit is difficult for the other party — but the legal risk and stress of a lawsuit remain even if your assets are limited.

State minimums are usually $15,000 to $25,000 per person. But in our experience, that's often not enough for most drivers who own a home or have savings. Here's why:

• A single ER visit and overnight hospital stay runs $20,000 to $30,000. State minimum limits of $15,000 per person do not cover it.
• A serious crash involving surgery, rehab and missed work can easily reach $100,000 for one person — and your insurer stops paying at your limit.
  

What does 100/300 mean for bodily injury coverage? A 100/300 policy pays up to $100,000 per injured person and $300,000 total per crash. If one person has $150,000 in medical bills, your insurer pays $100,000 and you owe the other $50,000 out of your own pocket. When your coverage runs out, the injured person can sue you and collect from your savings, home equity or future paychecks.

One detail most drivers miss: your per-person limit and your per-crash limit work independently. Crashes with multiple passengers can expose your per-crash limit faster than a solo-injury accident.

If you own a home or have more than $50,000 in savings, 100/300 is the minimum amount of car insurance you need. If you rent and have minimal assets, state minimums may be adequate — but confirm your state's actual minimum before assuming 25/50 applies, because several states require only $15,000 per person.

Moving from 25/50 to 100/300 gives you three times more protection per person and six times more per crash for $15 to $30 more per month.

One More Thing to Check

Some states let you choose between full and limited tort, which affects whether injured people can sue you for pain and suffering. In Michigan and New York, PIP is mandatory and covers your own injuries regardless of fault, but bodily injury liability still covers injuries you cause to others, so both are required. Check your state's rules before picking your limits.

Bodily injury liability is required in almost every state. Without it, a court judgment from a serious crash can attach to your home equity and garnish your wages. State minimums rarely cover a serious ER visit. For most drivers with assets to protect, 100/300 limits add $15 to $30 per month and are worth carrying.

Next Steps

1. Check your current bodily injury limits on your declarations page. If they are at state minimums, get quotes at 100/300 before your next renewal.
2. Use our how much car insurance you need guide to find the right limits for your situation.
3. Use our car insurance calculator to estimate your rate, then get quotes from at least three insurers at your recommended coverage level.

MoneyGeek's rate data is sourced from Quadrant Information Services and reflects 2.4 million quotes across major U.S. insurers. Rates shown are for a 40-year-old male driver with a clean record and good credit. For a full explanation of how MoneyGeek collects, analyzes and presents insurance data, see our auto insurance methodology.