The Top 5 Things Every Pennsylvania Driver Should Have on Their Car Insurance Policy

Most Pennsylvania drivers buy car insurance the same way: pick the cheapest option that satisfies the state minimum, sign the forms the agent puts in front of them, and never look at the policy again until something goes wrong. Then comes the crash, and the discovery that the policy they thought protected them barely protects them at all.

Pennsylvania law sets the minimum auto insurance requirement extraordinarily low: $15,000 in bodily injury coverage per person, $30,000 per accident, $5,000 in property damage, and just $5,000 in first-party medical benefits. Those numbers were set decades ago and have never kept pace with the actual cost of a serious injury. A single ambulance ride, emergency room visit, and one night in the hospital can exceed the entire state-minimum medical benefit before any real treatment begins.

The good news is that fixing an underinsured policy is usually inexpensive. The coverages that matter most in a serious crash often cost only a few dollars more per month than the bare minimum. This guide walks through the top five things every Pennsylvania driver should have on their car insurance policy, why each one matters, how often you should review your coverage, and the mistakes that leave drivers dangerously exposed. At GLS Injury Law, our attorneys have recovered more than $120 million for injured clients across Lancaster, York, and Chester Counties — and we have seen, again and again, how the right coverage decisions made before a crash change everything that happens after one.

First, Understand Pennsylvania’s “Choice No-Fault” System

Before getting to the five must-haves, every Pennsylvania driver needs to understand one structural feature of the state’s insurance system: Pennsylvania is a “choice no-fault” state. When you buy a policy, you choose between two tort options under 75 Pa. C.S. § 1705, and the choice profoundly affects your rights after a crash.

• Full tort. Preserves your unrestricted right to sue the at-fault driver for pain and suffering and all other non-economic damages. Costs more in premium.
• Limited tort. Reduces your premium, but bars recovery for pain and suffering unless your injury meets the legal definition of “serious injury” — death, serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement.

This single choice is the most consequential decision on a Pennsylvania auto policy, and it is the foundation on which the five must-haves below are built. Our strong recommendation: choose full tort. The premium difference is modest. The difference in your rights after a serious crash is enormous.

The Top 5 Coverages Every Pennsylvania Policy Should Have

#1: Full Tort Coverage

We just covered the choice, but it earns the number-one spot because it controls everything else. Limited tort saves a few dollars a month and can cost you the right to recover for the pain, suffering, and life disruption of a serious injury. The “serious injury” threshold is a litigation battleground; insurers fight hard to argue your injury does not qualify, and even legitimate, painful injuries can fall into dispute. By way of example, even though it may seem counterintuitive, fractured bones typically are not considered “serious bodily injury.”

There are statutory exceptions that restore full tort rights even for limited tort policyholders — crashes caused by drunk drivers, out-of-state drivers, commercial vehicle drivers, and uninsured drivers, among others. But relying on an exception is a gamble. Choosing full tort from the start removes the gamble entirely. For the modest premium difference, full tort is the single best value on a Pennsylvania auto policy.

#2: Higher Liability Limits Than the State Minimum

Liability coverage pays for the injuries and property damage you cause to others. Pennsylvania’s minimum is 15/30/5 — $15,000 per person, $30,000 per accident, $5,000 property damage. Those limits protect almost no one in a serious crash.

Here is the exposure most drivers never consider: if you cause a crash that injures someone seriously, and their damages exceed your liability limits, you are personally responsible for the difference. Your home, savings, wages, and other assets are exposed to a judgment. Raising your liability limits to 100/300/100 — $100,000 per person, $300,000 per accident, $100,000 property damage — typically costs a few hundred dollars per year and protects your personal assets from catastrophe. For drivers with significant assets, an umbrella policy adds another layer of protection above the auto policy limits.

#3: Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) Coverage

This is the coverage that protects you when the at-fault driver can’t. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage pays your damages when the driver who hit you has no insurance (uninsured) or not enough insurance to cover your injuries (underinsured). Given that roughly 7 to 9% of Pennsylvania drivers are uninsured, and that a huge share of insured drivers carry only the inadequate state minimum, UM/UIM is arguably the most important coverage you can buy to protect yourself and your family.

Under 75 Pa. C.S. § 1731, your insurer must offer UM and UIM coverage, and you can only reject it with a valid written waiver. Far too many drivers sign that waiver to save a few dollars without understanding what they are giving up. If an uninsured driver causes a serious crash and you waived UM coverage, the only solvent source of recovery is gone.

We recommend UM/UIM limits equal to your liability limits and stacking the coverage across all household vehicles under 75 Pa. C.S. § 1738 whenever possible, which multiplies the available protection. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s decision in Gallagher v. GEICO Indem. Co., 201 A.3d 131 (Pa. 2019), expanded household stacking rights and struck down many insurers’ attempts to limit it through household vehicle exclusions.

#4: Adequate First-Party Medical Benefits (PIP)

Pennsylvania requires a minimum of just $5,000 in first-party medical benefits (often called PIP, or Personal Injury Protection) under 75 Pa. C.S. § 1711. This coverage pays your medical bills regardless of fault, starting immediately after a crash, before fault is determined and before any third-party claim is resolved. The problem is that $5,000 is gone almost instantly in any serious crash.

Pennsylvania insurers must offer higher medical benefit limits, up to $100,000 and beyond, and the optional first-party benefits available under 75 Pa. C.S. § 1712 are worth understanding:

• Medical benefits: available well above the $5,000 minimum, up to $100,000 or more.
• Income loss benefits: replace a portion of lost wages — typically up to $2,500 per month, to a $50,000 maximum — when you cannot work because of crash injuries.
• Accidental death benefit: a lump-sum payment to beneficiaries if a covered person dies from crash injuries within a defined period.
• Funeral benefit: covers reasonable funeral and burial expenses.
• Extraordinary medical benefits: extends medical coverage above $100,000, up to a lifetime limit of $1,000,000 for catastrophic injuries requiring long-term care.

Raising your first-party medical benefits and adding income loss coverage is one of the most cost-effective upgrades available. These benefits pay regardless of fault, with no deductible fight, and they protect you and every member of your household.

#5: Comprehensive and Collision Coverage

The first four must-haves protect people. The fifth protects your vehicle. Liability coverage does not pay to repair or replace your own car; only collision and comprehensive coverage do that.

• Collision coverage: pays for damage to your vehicle from a crash, regardless of fault.
• Comprehensive coverage: pays for non-collision damage – theft, fire, vandalism, falling objects, storm damage, flooding, and hitting an animal.

If your vehicle is financed or leased, your lender requires both. If you own your vehicle outright, the decision is value-based: carrying full coverage on a high-mileage vehicle worth a few thousand dollars may not be cost-effective but dropping it on a newer or higher-value vehicle usually is a mistake. Adding rental reimbursement and roadside assistance is inexpensive and spares you significant inconvenience after a crash.

Does Your Car Insurance Cover All Drivers?

One of the most common and dangerous misconceptions in Pennsylvania auto insurance is the assumption that “my policy covers anyone who drives my car.” The reality is more complicated and getting it wrong can leave a driver uninsured at exactly the wrong moment.

Permissive Use

Most Pennsylvania policies extend coverage to “permissive users” — people you occasionally allow to drive your car with your permission. A friend who borrows your car for an afternoon is generally covered. But coverage for permissive users is sometimes subject to lower limits than coverage for named insureds, and policies vary widely. Never assume—read the policy or ask your agent directly.

Household Members and Regular Drivers

Anyone who lives in your household and regularly drives your vehicle generally must be listed on the policy as a named driver. This includes spouses, adult children, roommates who drive your car, and teen drivers. Failing to disclose a household member who regularly drives your vehicle is a common reason insurers deny claims or cancel policies; the insurer argues the risk was misrepresented. If someone lives with you and drives your car, they belong on the policy.

Excluded Drivers

Some policies specifically name excluded drivers – individuals the insurer will not cover under any circumstances, often because of poor driving records. If an excluded driver operates your vehicle and crashes, there is generally no coverage at all. Know who is excluded from your policy and never let them drive your car.

Business Use and Rideshare

Standard personal auto policies typically exclude commercial use. If you drive for a rideshare or delivery service, your personal policy may not cover crashes that occur while you are working — you may need a rideshare endorsement or commercial coverage. This gap catches many rideshare and delivery drivers by surprise after a crash.

How Often Should You Review Your Car Insurance Policy?

A car insurance policy is not a set-it-and-forget-it purchase. Life changes, and coverage that was adequate three years ago may be dangerously thin today. Review your policy:

• At least once a year. An annual review at renewal time catches gaps before they matter. Confirm your tort election, liability limits, UM/UIM coverage, stacking status, and first-party benefits are still where you want them.
• After any major life change. Marriage, divorce, a new teen driver, a move, a new job with a different commute, buying a home, or accumulating assets all change your insurance needs. A new household member who drives is especially important to add.
• After buying or financing a vehicle. New vehicles usually require comprehensive and collision; financed vehicles require it by contract.
• When your financial situation changes. As your assets grow, your liability exposure grows with them. Higher limits and umbrella coverage become more important the more you have to protect.
• Whenever you receive a renewal with changes. Insurers adjust premiums, deductibles, and sometimes coverage terms at renewal. Read the renewal declarations page rather than assuming nothing changed.

Common Pennsylvania Auto Insurance Mistakes

In our car accident firm, the same coverage mistakes appear again and again; each one discovered too late, after a crash:

• Choosing limited tort to save money. The premium savings are modest; the lost right to recover for pain and suffering can be devastating.
• Carrying only state-minimum liability. 15/30/5 exposes your personal assets to any serious crash you cause.
• Waiving or underbuying UM/UIM. When an uninsured or underinsured driver hits you, this is often the only meaningful source of recovery.
• Waiving stacking. Stacking multiplies your UM/UIM protection across vehicles and policies for a small premium increase.
• Carrying only minimum PIP. $5,000 in medical benefits disappears in hours; higher first-party benefits pay regardless of fault.
• Failing to list household drivers. An undisclosed regular driver can void coverage when you need it most.
• Never reviewing the policy. Coverage that fit your life years ago may leave you badly exposed today.
• Buying on price alone. The cheapest policy often has the worst claims handling, which matters most…exactly when you need to file a claim.

When Coverage Isn’t Enough: What Happens After a Crash

Even the best coverage planning sometimes falls short of a catastrophic injury. When that happens, an experienced car accident attorney works to identify every available source of recovery: the at-fault driver’s liability policy, your own UM/UIM coverage, stacked coverage across household policies, any umbrella policies, and in crashes involving commercial vehicles, drunk drivers, or defective products, additional defendants with substantial insurance of their own. Recovery is frequently larger than victims first assume, because the available coverage extends beyond the obvious single policy.

The same applies to motorcycle crashes, which carry their own insurance rules, and to every other kind of serious personal injury claim arising from a Pennsylvania crash. When a crash takes a life, surviving family members may pursue a wrongful death claim under 42 Pa. C.S. § 8301, with first-party benefits, UM/UIM coverage, and liability coverage all potentially in play.

Whatever your coverage situation, the steps you take immediately after a crash matter enormously. Our guide on steps to take after a car accident in Pennsylvania walks through exactly what to do, and what not to do, to protect both your health and your claim.