The car insurance works somewhat different than it might work in your home country. First of all, you must have in mind that the coverage is by far not as good as it is in most European countries. This starts already with the coverage (limits) you have. While you might be familiar with unlimited or 5 million dollar coverage, the limits here are very low.

The insurance you must have to have if you own a car is the liability. This insurance covers you in case of an accident and pays for the damage you caused at other persons and at other vehicles, etc. The state's minimum limits (as of July 2002) by law are $25,000 per person ($50,000 per accident) and $25,000 for property damage. That means, the insurance companies are not required to pay more than those limits per personal or property injuries and, as you can tell, these limits can be easily passed if you cause an accident with a somewhat more expensive car. There is a chance to increase these limits but you have to pay for that (welcome to America). For example, to increase these limits by a factor of 10, it will cost you at least $300 (if you are under 25).

Since many in the states drive illegally without any insurance, companies offer an additional package to cover you against accidents with those people. Actually, even police cars are not insured; so don't even think about causing an accident with cops.

With those two insurances you are fine to drive in the states. But if want to extend the insurance to cover your car in any case, then there are two additional insurances that can be fairly costly. The comprehensive covers your car in an accident caused by you. Any amount more than your deductible (the amount you will have to pay on your own) will then be paid by the insurance. However, it is worth it to ask them if they will pay based on actual cash value or some other scheme. The other insurance is called comprehensive that covers damages on your car in non-accident situations like break ups, weather, etc. Even there, the insurance will pay the difference between the loss and your deductible.

Here now some tips and some approximate prices. First of all, don't blindly trust one person telling you that his insurance is the cheapest. If you have the time, then call many insurance companies for a "quote" (that means: ask for a price for the insurance). Simply look in the yellow pages under insurance or car insurance and you'll find millions of insurance companies. Here is a list of things, you have to tell them upon calling:

-you are an international student studying at GA TECH

-you are below 25/ above 25 (your age)

-you have the GA license for such and such years/days

-you have had a license in your home country for such and such years

and drove w/o any accident during that time
-you are a good student and want good grade discounts (you really get a better deal if you can show them that you are a good student)

-you are a low mileage driver (you walk to school or take a bike, if you really have to drive, tell them that you drive less than 3 miles to work)

-list them a few security features you car has (alarm, automatic seat belts, aribags, ...)

-the school ZIP code is 30332 (a lot of insurance rates depend on the ZIP code and that code is most often cheaper than others in midtown/downtown, however, it might not be quite legal, since usually you are required to give the ZIP code of your home address. If you give them the school ZIP code, then also give them the P.O. Box mailing address !!!

One of the above issues is quite important. Prices change a lot if you become 25 years old. In many cases, the rates drop by 30% or more.

Here, one idea how much it might be to insure a car. Most of you will only need liability and uninsured motorist, such that you will have to pay roughly $700 a year if you are under 25. Note though that you do not have to pay the entire amount upfront but that you can pay the money for most insurances in monthly installments. Should the insurance quote you much more than that, then forget it. Many of the incoming students have an insurance with Dan Whitley (404 373-8333), this might be a good place to start and get an idea how much it is. Otherwise, if you happen to have an american license for already two years, the it might be a good idea to check out the AAA insurance (404 843-4500).

One last reminder, the insurance totally depends of your driving record. Should you get a ticket for speeding or driving under influence (DUI, very bad), then the insurance rate can sky rocket to a huge amount, so better: drive safe and don't drink and drive :-)

last updated: 06/27/02 , WSF Admin