Effective Date
Car insurance policies have many details that are important for the policyholder to understand before purchasing a policy. A very important part of any car insurance policy is the effective date. Car insurance is sold for periods of time, so knowing when car insurance starts can have a big impact on drivers. Your car insurance policy has a set effective date that marks the start of your policy. Knowing when that date occurs is very important to drivers for legal and coverage reasons. Just because you purchase a car insurance policy does not mean that your car is already covered and that it is okay to go out driving in.
The law in most states requires a car to be insured before taking it out for a drive. It does not matter where you are going, if you get pulled over, the police will ask to see your proof of insurance. This makes the day when car insurance starts important because driving without insurance can get you a ticket. Even if you have the insurance card and have purchased the policy, if the effective date has not come around yet, you are driving an uninsured vehicle. When you purchase insurance, you should wait until the start date has passed to drive your car to avoid any tickets for driving without coverage.
Coverage is the other reason to know the effective date of your insurance policy. Since the effective date is when car insurance starts to cover your vehicle, before that your vehicle has no coverage. If you were to get into an accident before this date, the insurance company will not have to pay anything towards the accident related expenses. Accidents can cost a great deal of money when property damage, repair costs, and medical bills are all added up. Your car insurance policy covers those expenses for you if your policy is active. Until your policy becomes active the expenses are all on your shoulders if you are involved in a collision.
Buying insurance is a process that involves a lot of factors and considerations. Amounts of coverage and types of coverage are all important to look into properly before choosing your policy. Once you choose your policy, knowing your effective date will keep you out of danger. When car insurance starts and when it ends can keep you out of legal trouble as well as financial trouble in the event of a ticket or collision. The effective date of your car insurance policy can be found printed on your insurance card. Insurance cards list when the policy starts and when it ends. To avoid having a lapse in coverage, make sure to renew the policy when it expires.