PIP and the Texas Auto Insurance Policy

Understanding Personal Injury Protection Coverage

Purchasing car insurance for a new teenage driver is a scary and costly expense for parents.  With statistics revealing most teenage drivers will sustain their first car accident within 12 months of acquiring a driver's license, car insurance companies are not apprehensive about dipping in our wallets for big bucks in premiums.  For teenage driver's in Texas, the cost for full coverage insurance can, literally, be twice as much as that of the parents. Understanding one dynamic of the auto insurance policy, Personal Injury Protection (PIP), will offer additional education, to parents, in the scope of coverages and the basis for premium calculations. 

Personal Injury Protection (PIP), is an optional automobile insurance coverage in Texas. Under state guidelines, PIP coverage is automatically added to a teenage driver's insurance policy unless the policy holder specfically opts out of the coverage. To do so, a form acknowledging the opt out provision is signed thereby eliminating the additional premium needed to supplement the policy with PIP coverage. Without signing this "opt out" form, PIP coverage will automatically appear on the teenage driver's policy, generally at a basic $2,500.00 limit.  So, what is PIP coverage?