Accident Terms and Definitions

Commissioner of Insurance
The title of the head of most state insurance departments. In some states, the Director or Superintendent of Insurance is used instead.

Comprehensive Coverage
Pays for damage to your car caused by reason other than collision, such as fire, theft, windstorm, flood, etc.

Uninsured Motorist Coverage (UMC)
Provides coverage for a policyholder involved in a collision with a driver who does not have liability insurance.

Binder
A temporary or preliminary agreement which provides coverage until a policy can be issued/delivered.

Vehicle ID No. (VIN)
This 17 character number is unique to each vehicle. It identifies characteristics of the vehicle, including manufacturer, year, model, body, engine specifications, and serial number.

Cancellation
The termination of an insurance policy before its normal expiration date.

Quote
An estimate of the cost of insurance based on information supplied to the insurance company.

Subrogation
The process in which an insurance company, after paying a loss to its insured, recovers the amount of the loss for damages (plus the insured's deductible) from the legally liable party.

Junk Title
A Junk Title is issued on a vehicle damaged to the extent that the cost of repairing the vehicle for safe operation exceeds its fair market value; or a vehicle that has been declared a total loss by an insurer or other state or jurisdiction.

Accident
A collision involving an automobile and anything that causes damage to the automobile, including other automobiles, telephone poles, buildings, and trees.