Auto insurance is sold in a vocabulary most people never learn. You end up choosing between numbers on a quote sheet without a clear sense of what any of it means.
Here's every coverage explained plainly, with the Minnesota-specific rules that apply.
Liability Coverage: Protecting Everyone Else
Liability pays for damage you cause to other people. It's the core of any auto policy and the reason insurance is legally required.
It comes in two parts, usually written as three numbers like 100/300/50:
- Bodily injury per person ($100,000) — the maximum paid for any one injured person
- Bodily injury per accident ($300,000) — the maximum for all injuries in one accident
- Property damage ($50,000) — the maximum for damage to vehicles and property
Minnesota's minimum is 30/60/10. Those numbers were set a long time ago and haven't kept pace with medical or vehicle costs.
Consider what $10,000 of property damage actually covers today. A new pickup runs $50,000 or more. If you total someone's vehicle and carry the state minimum, you personally owe the remaining $40,000 — and that judgment can be collected through wage garnishment for years.
Liability is also the cheapest coverage per dollar of protection. Moving from 30/60/10 to 250/500/100 typically costs $15 to $25 a month and multiplies your protection eightfold.
Personal Injury Protection (PIP): Minnesota's No-Fault Coverage
Minnesota is a no-fault state. PIP pays your medical bills and lost wages after an accident regardless of who was at fault.
The required minimum is $40,000 total: $20,000 for medical expenses and $20,000 for wage loss and replacement services.
Because Minnesota is no-fault, you can only sue an at-fault driver for pain and suffering if your injuries meet certain thresholds — generally more than $4,000 in medical expenses, 60 days of disability, permanent injury, permanent disfigurement, or death.
PIP applies whether you were driving, a passenger, a pedestrian, or a cyclist struck by a vehicle.
Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM)
This protects you when the other driver is at fault but doesn't have enough insurance — or any.
Uninsured motorist covers you when the at-fault driver has no insurance or flees the scene. Underinsured motorist covers the gap when they have coverage but not enough for your injuries.
Minnesota requires 25/50 for each. Given how many drivers carry only state minimums, higher UM/UIM limits are one of the more valuable upgrades available. It's protecting you and your family, not a stranger.
A reasonable practice: match your UM/UIM limits to your liability limits.
Collision Coverage
Collision pays to repair or replace your vehicle after a crash, regardless of fault. It applies whether you hit another car, a guardrail, a tree, or a pothole deep enough to cause damage.
You choose a deductible, commonly $500 or $1,000. Higher deductible, lower premium.
If you have a loan or lease, your lender requires collision. If you own the car outright and it's worth only a few thousand dollars, dropping collision can make financial sense — you'd be paying premiums that approach the maximum possible payout.
Comprehensive Coverage
Comprehensive — sometimes called "other than collision" — covers damage that doesn't come from a crash:
- Theft and vandalism
- Hail, wind, and flood
- Fire
- Hitting an animal (deer collisions are comprehensive, not collision)
- Falling objects like tree limbs
- Glass damage
In Minnesota, comprehensive earns its cost on hail and deer alone. It's typically much cheaper than collision, and many carriers offer glass coverage with a low or zero deductible.
Comprehensive claims also generally don't affect your rates the way at-fault collisions do, since they're not tied to your driving behavior.
Optional Coverages Worth Knowing
Rental reimbursement — pays for a rental while your car is repaired after a covered claim. Cheap, and body shop backlogs after Minnesota hail and snow events can stretch repairs for weeks.
Roadside assistance — towing, jump starts, lockouts, fuel delivery. Usually a few dollars a month, less than a single winter tow.
Gap insurance — if your car is totaled, insurance pays actual cash value, which may be less than your loan balance. Gap covers that difference. Important if you financed with little money down.
New car replacement — replaces a totaled new vehicle with a brand-new equivalent rather than paying depreciated value.
Custom equipment — covers aftermarket additions that standard policies sublimit heavily.
What Actually Drives Your Rate
- Driving record — accidents and violations affect rates for three to five years
- Claims history — including comprehensive claims in some cases
- Vehicle — repair cost, theft rate, and safety ratings all factor in
- Annual mileage — less driving generally means lower premiums
- Where you park it — garaging address affects theft and accident exposure
- Credit-based insurance score — permitted in Minnesota and a meaningful factor for most carriers
- Coverage choices — limits and deductibles
SR-22 Filings
If you've had a DWI, driven uninsured, or accumulated serious violations, Minnesota may require an SR-22 — a certificate your insurer files with the state proving you carry coverage. It's not a type of insurance; it's a filing attached to your policy.
Not every carrier writes SR-22 policies, and rates vary widely between those that do. See our SR-22 insurance page if this applies to you.
Practical Ways to Lower Your Premium
- Bundle auto with home or renters
- Raise deductibles if you can absorb the out-of-pocket
- Ask about every discount: good driver, low mileage, safety features, paperless, pay-in-full, good student
- Skip small claims that barely exceed your deductible
- Shop across carriers every few years — rates for identical coverage vary substantially
That last point is where an independent broker helps most. I submit one application and compare multiple carriers at once. If you'd like to know whether you're overpaying, call me at 651-243-0056.