Does car insurance cover mice damage?

Damage caused by mice and other rodents can happen to any car when you least expect it. Rodent damage can come most frequently when the small animals climb inside the car and eat your wiring, which could cause serious electrical damage to your vehicle.

Sometimes it can be surprising just how severe the damage caused by small rodents can be. Rodents and mice can:

• chew on car wiring
• cause bare wires to touch one another
• cause electrical shorts
• chow through the car’s main harness, the car’s central wiring block

All in all, mice damage is no small worry – in fact, it can even render your car undrivable. It can happen anywhere, and there’s little that you can do to prevent this type of damage or predict that it is coming. Rodents can enter a garaged vehicle or one parked by the curb and make short work of valuable auto wiring.

While mice damage to your car could have a major impact on its driveability, it is only covered sometimes by auto insurance. If you’re worried about coverage for rodent and mice damage, it’s very important that you maintain comprehensive coverage on your vehicle.

There are a number of choices that you can make when it comes to car insurance for your vehicle. You can compare these choices online using comparison tools to find the best options for you. Which choices are available to you can depend on whether you’re still paying off your car, you lease the vehicle or you own it outright. Car insurance options can also depend on the state laws where you live.

In general, however, you can choose from a few types of coverage options that provide different amounts of coverage for non-collision damage caused by animals, the type of harm caused by mice chewing on car wiring.

If you have a comprehensive car insurance option as part of your insurance package, you could be covered for this type of rodent damage. Because the type of insurance determines your coverage, it’s very important for you to select the right options when choosing auto insurance for your vehicle.

You can learn more about choosing the right auto insurance with the best value and most extensive coverage options by using online comparison tools. When you shop around, you can compare quotes from major car insurers to help you make the best choice for you and your vehicle.

How can you be protected if your car is damaged by mice?

You may well find yourself protected for damages caused by mice if you carry a comprehensive policy option on your auto insurance. Comprehensive coverage provides protection for your car in case of incidents that are not related to a crash or a collision.

Comprehensive car insurance can provide coverage for damages caused by a wide range of actions, including:

• theft
• vandalism
• weather events like rain storms, hail storms, and tornadoes
• fire
• falling objects like rocks and tree branches
• encounters with a live animal.

Depending on the specifics of your comprehensive policy coverage, it may well provide the protection you need in case your wiring is damaged by mice.

On the other hand, basic coverage like that mandated by law is unable to protect you from the ravages of teething rodents. The most basic type of car insurance on the market that fulfills these obligations is liability insurance. This type of insurance only covers damages to other people and their vehicles in case of an auto accident.

Another type of car insurance is collision coverage. This provides protection if you suffer damages as a result of an auto accident with another vehicle or an object, even running over a pothole. While collision coverage can be very important in protecting your car, it would not provide coverage for the type of damage caused by rodents.

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Is mice damage covered under your policy?

It is important to communicate directly with your auto insurer to understand what is covered under your policy. You can also read over your policy to understand the types of perils and damages included in your comprehensive coverage as well as those that are specifically excluded.

If you want to make sure that rodent damage is included in your policy, read the policy and check with the insurer to make sure it is the right coverage for you.

Some policies may have exclusions for all damages that are not specifically named, and some may consider animal encounters to only include collisions with animals. However, many more comprehensive policy options can provide protection when mice gnaw through your wiring.

You can compare comprehensive coverage options on auto insurance comparison sites. Shopping around can help you to see the different options offered by car insurance companies and help you choose the best value and coverage for your vehicle.

Should you file a claim for mice damage on your car insurance?

If rodent damage is included in your comprehensive policy, it will be treated like other non-collision damages caused to your vehicle. This means that, like other types of damage claims, you will have a deductible to pay before your comprehensive policy will cover the remainder of the damage amount.

A deductible is a specific amount that you must pay before your insurance kicks in. This amount is specified in your policy, and you can choose a specific deductible amount when buying car insurance.

When using an online comparison tool to shop around for a car insurance policy, you can compare the deductibles on different policies and determine which is the best value for you and your vehicle.

You may be worried about filing a claim for this kind of damage. While mice and rodent damage would be a comprehensive claim and not the type of damage caused to your car by any fault of your own, you may be concerned that filing a claim may cause your insurance costs to go up. In general, this is far less likely for comprehensive claims.

In addition, it simply may not be worth your while to file all of the paperwork for a claim if the amount of damage caused by the rodents is below your deductible amount. You wouldn’t receive any additional compensation, in this case.

Many times, rodent damage can be minor and only involve small repairs. It is important to get even small amounts of rodent-damaged wiring repaired in order to protect your car and ensure that you’re mitigating the possibility of future electrical damage. You could be considered to contribute to future damages if you fail to repair mice damage that you know about.

When you choose a car insurance policy, you may want to make sure that you choose the coverage that provides protection for important concerns like mice damage. Online tools can help you find the right protection for your vehicle. Shop online to easily compare car insurance options, deductibles and premium costs to maximize both your savings and your coverage.

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