Bodily injury liability is an auto insurance coverage that pays for injuries an at-fault driver causes to others. Bodily injury liability covers medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, funeral costs, and legal defense. At-fault crashes create three main financial risks: injury claims, lawsuits, and costs above policy limits. According to the Insurance Information Institute, 0.80% of liability policyholders had a bodily injury liability claim in 2024. That claim rate equals about one claim for every 125 insured vehicles per year. Nearly every state in the U.S. requires drivers to carry minimum per-person and per-accident injury limits. Insurance Navy helps drivers find the right insurance at the right price. This guide explains bodily injury liability coverage, exclusions, limits, state minimums, and costs.
Table of contents
- What is Bodily Injury Liability?
- What Does Bodily Injury Liability Cover?
- Medical Expenses
- Loss of Income
- Pain and Suffering
- Legal Counsel and Legal Fees
- Funeral Expenses
- What Bodily Injury Liability Does Not Cover
- How Much Bodily Injury Liability Insurance Do I Need?
- Which States Require Bodily Injury Liability Coverage?
- Bodily Injury Liability Minimums in Selected States.
- What Are the Bodily Injury Liability Limits?
- What Is the Difference Between Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability Coverage?
- How Much Does Bodily Injury Coverage Cost?
- How to Add Protection Above Your Bodily Injury Liability Limits
- Frequently Asked Questions About Bodily Injury Liability
- What Is the Most Common Bodily Injury Coverage?
- What Does 100-300 Bodily Injury Mean?
- What Is the Difference Between Bodily Injury Liability and Medical Payments Coverage?
- What does $25,000 bodily injury liability per person mean?
- Is bodily injury liability the same as personal injury protection (PIP)?
What is Bodily Injury Liability?
Bodily injury liability (BI) is the part of your auto liability insurance that pays for injuries you cause to other people in a crash. Bodily injury liability pays their medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and funeral costs, plus your legal defense if they sue. Bodily injury liability does not pay for your own injuries.
Without this insurance the at-fault driver would be personally liable for all medical expenses, legal fees and other damages to the injured people.
What Does Bodily Injury Liability Cover?
Bodily injury liability pays 5 types of costs for the people you injure in an at-fault crash. Those people can be the other driver, the other driver's passengers, or a pedestrian you hit.
Medical Expenses
Bodily Injury Liability Insurance covers medical expenses for injuries to others in an accident caused by you.
This may include costs for emergency services, hospital stays, surgeries, medication, physical therapy and ongoing medical treatments.
Since medical costs can add up fast, having enough BI coverage ensures the injured party gets the necessary care without putting the financial burden on the at-fault driver.
Loss of Income
If the injured person cannot work because of the crash, bodily injury liability pays their lost wages for the weeks or months they miss while recovering.
Pain and Suffering
Bodily Injury Liability Insurance will also pay the injured party for pain and suffering.
This is usually determined by how severe the injuries were and the impact on the victim’s lifestyle from the accident.
While this is a more subjective aspect of coverage, it acknowledges accidents have emotional and physical consequences beyond the direct costs.
Legal Counsel and Legal Fees
If the injured party decides to sue the at-fault driver, Bodily Injury Liability Insurance will cover legal fees during the lawsuit. This includes the cost of a lawyer, court fees and settlement costs.
Lawsuits can be expensive and time consuming. BI Liability Insurance ensures the at-fault driver is not personally responsible for these large expenses.
Funeral Expenses
In the event of a fatality in the car accident, Bodily Injury Liability Insurance will cover the funeral expenses. This provides financial support to the family of the deceased during a very difficult and trying time.
What Bodily Injury Liability Does Not Cover
Bodily injury liability does not pay for 5 types of loss. Other coverages fill those gaps:
Your own injuries - Medical payments coverage (MedPay) or personal injury protection (PIP) pays for injuries to you and your passengers.
The other person's car or property - Property damage liability pays for that damage.
Your own car - Collision coverage pays to repair your car after a crash.
Injuries an uninsured driver causes you - Uninsured motorist coverage pays when the at-fault driver has no insurance.
Costs above your limits - You pay any amount above your per-person or per-accident limit yourself.
How Much Bodily Injury Liability Insurance Do I Need?
Most drivers need more than their state minimum. The average bodily injury liability claim was $28,278 in 2024, according to the Insurance Information Institute (citing ISO data). That average is more than the $25,000 per-person minimum in Illinois, Indiana, Nevada, and Georgia.
With a $25,000 per-person limit, your insurer pays $25,000 of a $28,278 claim. You owe the remaining $3,278. Serious crashes cost far more than the average.
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) advises drivers who could not pay high medical and legal bills out of pocket to buy more than the state minimum. Choose limits at least as high as the assets you want to protect, such as savings and home equity.
Which States Require Bodily Injury Liability Coverage?
Almost every state requires bodily injury liability. The exceptions are New Hampshire, Florida, the New Jersey Basic Policy, and remote parts of Alaska.
New Hampshire - New Hampshire has no compulsory auto liability insurance law.
Florida - Florida requires $10,000 of personal injury protection (PIP) and $10,000 of property damage liability to register a car, but not bodily injury liability. Florida taxis must carry $125,000 per person and $250,000 per occurrence in bodily injury liability. A driver convicted of DUI must carry FR-44 limits of $100,000 per person and $300,000 per crash.
New Jersey - New Jersey's Basic Policy does not include bodily injury liability. Basic Policy buyers can add $10,000 per accident as an option. New Jersey's Standard Policy requires bodily injury liability.
Alaska - Alaska does not require insurance in areas where vehicle registration is not required. A driver with a ticket for a violation of 6 points or more in the last 5 years must still carry liability insurance.
Every other state sets its own minimum. Several states raised their minimums in 2025 and 2026, so check your state's current requirement before you renew.
Bodily Injury Liability Minimums in Selected States.
The table shows minimums as of October 2026. Each pair is the per-person and per-accident bodily injury limit.
State | BI minimum | Full liability minimum | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Illinois | $25,000 / $50,000 | 25/50/20 | Also requires 25/50 uninsured motorist BI |
Indiana | $25,000 / $50,000 | 25/50/25 | |
Nevada | $25,000 / $50,000 | 25/50/20 | |
Georgia | $25,000 / $50,000 | 25/50/25 | |
Massachusetts | $25,000 / $50,000 | 25/50/30 | Raised July 1, 2025 |
Texas | $30,000 / $60,000 | 30/60/25 | |
California | $30,000 / $60,000 | 30/60/15 | Raised January 1, 2025 |
Utah | $30,000 / $65,000 | 30/65/25 | Policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025 |
New Jersey (Standard Policy) | $35,000 / $70,000 | 35/70/25 | Policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2026 |
North Carolina | $50,000 / $100,000 | 50/100/50 | Policies issued or renewed on or after July 1, 2025 |
Virginia | $50,000 / $100,000 | 50/100/25 | Policies effective on or after January 1, 2025 |
Alaska | $50,000 / $100,000 | 50/100/25 | Registration-area exception, described above |
What Are the Bodily Injury Liability Limits?
Each Bodily Injury Liability policy has a coverage limit, which the policyholder selects when purchasing the insurance.
BI Liability is generally presented in a "number/number" format, indicating two types of limits:
Per Person Limit: This is the maximum amount of money the insurance company will pay to a single person in an accident. For example, if the limit is $50,000, the insurer will pay up to $50,000 for each person injured. If 2 people are injured, the insurer pays up to $50,000 for each of them, as long as the total stays within the per-accident limit.
Per Accident Limit: This is the total amount the insurer will pay for all injuries in a single accident. For example, if the per accident limit is $100,000 and four people are injured, the insurer will pay a maximum of $100,000.
Policies show both limits together as a pair. 25/50 means $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident. A third number, as in 25/50/25, is the property damage liability limit.
What Is the Difference Between Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability Coverage?
The main difference between Bodily Injury Liability Insurance and Property Damage Liability Insurance is the nature of the expenses they cover:
Bodily Injury Liability Insurance: Pays for injuries to other people in a crash you cause.
Property Damage Liability Insurance: Compensates for damage to another person’s property, such as vehicles, buildings, or other structures, caused by the policyholder in an accident.
In essence, BI Liability covers non-property-related expenses, while Property Damage Liability covers physical damage to property.
Bodily injury claims cost about 4 times as much as property damage claims. The average property damage liability claim was $6,770 in 2024, according to the Insurance Information Institute (citing ISO).
How Much Does Bodily Injury Coverage Cost?
The average U.S. liability premium was $813.27 in 2024, up about 10% from $736.43 in 2023, according to the NAIC. The NAIC figure combines bodily injury and property damage liability, because insurers sell the 2 coverages together. Your own price depends on your state, driving record, vehicle, and the limits you choose.
For example, a policy with $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident will cost more than one with lower limits.
State averages vary widely. These are the 2024 average liability premiums (bodily injury and property damage combined) in the 6 states where Insurance Navy operates:
State | 2024 average liability premium |
|---|---|
Nevada | $1,195.77 |
Georgia | $1,187.17 |
Texas | $892.78 |
California | $760.49 |
Illinois | $649.14 |
Indiana | $523.18 |
Source: NAIC, 2024 Auto Insurance Database Average Premium Supplement (September 2026), Table 1C.
How to Add Protection Above Your Bodily Injury Liability Limits
You can add umbrella insurance to get more coverage beyond what Bodily Injury Liability Insurance provides.
Umbrella insurance is a secondary policy that kicks in when the primary BI Liability policy limits are used up. This extra layer of protection is especially important for people with significant assets that could be at risk in the event of a big accident.
Umbrella policies are commonly sold in $1 million steps. A $1 million umbrella policy typically costs $150 to $250 a year. Most insurers want about $250,000 of liability on your auto policy before they sell you an umbrella policy.
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