Inputs
About this tool
Published 2026-09-17 · Last updated 2026-09-17.
What you enter
You enter only facts about yourself and your car, plus any premium you have already been quoted elsewhere — the tool stores no insurer rates and invents none. Inputs in the working tool on this page are: state, whether you own, finance, or lease the car, approximate vehicle value band, driving pattern, liability limit band you are considering, collision/comprehensive choice, and deductible you could afford. You may also enter an annual premium from an existing quote, purely so the tool can show that figure alongside your deductible choice; it does not generate a premium.
Be accurate. A wrong state, a wrong ownership status, or a guessed deductible produces a misleading checklist. If you finance or lease, note that your lender or lessor may require collision and comprehensive — that requirement overrides a preference for liability-only.
Your estimate
The tool's output is a coverage checklist, not a price. It shows: the coverages you selected, the deductible as a share of your vehicle value band, the out-of-pocket amount you would pay first after a covered incident at that deductible, and any gaps the checklist flags — for example, liability-only with no cover for your own car, or full coverage without uninsured motorist cover. If you entered a quoted premium, the tool repeats it back labelled as YOUR ENTERED QUOTE, so you can see it next to your choices. It never presents a calculated premium as an insurer price.
Read the output as a shopping list for quotes: take the same limits and deductible to every insurer, so price differences reflect insurer pricing, not different products.
Coverage levels explained
Liability pays for injury and damage you cause to others, up to your limits. Collision pays for damage to your own car after a crash, regardless of fault, minus your deductible. Comprehensive pays for non-crash damage to your own car, such as theft, vandalism, or weather, also minus a deductible. Uninsured/underinsured motorist cover steps in when the at-fault driver has no insurance or too little of it. "Full coverage" is shorthand for liability plus collision plus comprehensive; it is not a single policy type and it does not automatically include uninsured motorist cover.
Higher limits protect your assets better but cost more in a quote; a higher deductible lowers the insurer's share of a claim and usually lowers a quote, but raises what you pay first. There is no universally right combination — only a combination that fits your car value, your loan, your assets, and what you could pay out of pocket.
Next: cheapest-by-state tool
Once you have a coverage checklist, the next step is comparison by state and profile. The cheapest-by-state tool (A3) structures that comparison: same state, same profile, same cover. Do not jump from this calculator straight to a national "cheapest" list, which mixes states, profiles, and cover levels into one number.
ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE — not a policy fact
An illustrative driver, Sam, owns a car outright, values it in a modest band, and is choosing between a lower and a higher deductible. Sam enters both deductible options into the tool. The tool shows the higher deductible as a larger first payment after a covered incident, and flags that liability-only would leave Sam's own car unrepaired. Sam takes the same limits and deductible to three quotes. No premium is stated for Sam, because the tool holds no insurer rates.
Official sources
Check the current rules on the official site: National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Figures and rules change, so confirm before you buy or enrol.