Auto insurance you’ll need when driving to Mexico
By Aaron Crowe
Whether driving to Mexico for a weekend trip to the beach, an extended holiday trip to see family, or a six-month winter stay in retirement, having auto insurance specifically for driving in Mexico is mandatory.
Navigating the country’s insurance laws can be difficult, but it basically comes down to two things you’ll need and one you won’t. You’ll need a permit to drive beyond most border towns inside Mexico, and you’ll need auto insurance from an insurance company based in Mexico.
What you won’t need is your U.S. auto insurance policy, because it has no effect in Mexico and won’t provide any coverage there.
The days of “self-negotiating” your way out of trouble with some cash after a car accident there are long over, says Jim Labelle, president of International Insurance Group, a U.S. company based in Flagstaff, Ariz., that sells auto insurance for Mexico-based insurers.
Insurance rates vary based on the vehicle’s value and coverage, but most policies that Labelle’s group sells cost $15 to $20 a day for most buyers, he says. “Snowbirds” or others going there for six months or so would pay $400 to $500 a year for a policy, he says.
What type of coverage is needed
Comprehensive and collision coverage aren’t mandatory in Mexico, but drivers will probably want to buy enough such coverage so they can be reimbursed if their vehicle is damaged, Labelle says.
“Whatever level of insurance coverage you’re getting in the U.S., we recommend you still get it in Mexico,” he says.
In January, liability insurance will be mandatory for drivers in Mexico. It can cost $300,000, for example, to settle an insurance claim if a U.S. driver negligently killed someone in an accident in Mexico, Labelle says.
Liability insurance will cover you for property damage caused by your vehicle, legal liability for injuries or death of people not in your vehicle, and medical expenses for you or other people in your vehicle.
Mexican auto insurance is needed from border to border in the country, a change from a few years ago when most border cities within Mexico were exempt.
Want to read the full story? Find it at CheapCarInsurance.net, one of my clients as a freelance journalist.