Reading the numbers

Auto liability limits come as a pair like 100/300: the first number is the most the policy pays one injured person (in thousands), the second is the most it pays for everyone in one accident. Property damage rides alongside — the other car, the fence, the storefront.

What state minimum really buys

Minimum limits like 25/50 exist to make driving legal, not to protect you. One night in an American ER can exhaust $25,000. When the verdict exceeds your limit, the balance is yours — wages, savings, the house. Minimum-limit policies are priced attractively because the carrier's exposure is capped; yours isn't.

The upgrade math

The jump from 25/50 to 100/300 typically costs far less than people assume — on Pearl you can watch the exact number move in the coverage customizer. Past 250/500, the efficient next dollar usually goes to an umbrella policy instead: a million dollars of coverage above every policy you own, often for under $30 a month.

The one-sentence rule

Carry limits that could survive hurting a surgeon in a Suburban full of her family. If that sentence makes your current limits feel thin, they are.