Mexico Tourist Auto Policy

Insurance Coverage Overview

Many tourists make the serious mistake of assuming their U.S. or Canadian auto policy will cover a liability accident in Mexico. In fact, the Mexican Government does not recognize U.S. or Canadian insurance policies in Mexico. In case of an accident you must provide proof of liability insurance provided by an authorized Mexican insurer or you must have enough cash in your pocket to pay for the damages you caused in the accident. Without either legitimate Mexican insurance or enough cash in your pocket, by law, your vehicle could be impounded and/or the driver will be jailed.

Motormexico.com policies offer a wide variety of coverage for liability, legal assistance, damage to your car, theft, medical payments, travel and emergency medical assistance, and more. In addition, our companies offer valuable coverage upgrades. ABA/Chubb Seguros/GMAC Plus, Grupo Nacional Provincial (GNP) Deluxe, Quálitas Compañía de seguros VIP, and HDI Seguros Premier are among the most comprehensive tourist auto insurance packages available for Mexico.

Basic Coverage Description

POLICIES FROM ALL COMPANIES CONTAIN THE FOLLOWING MINIMUM COVERAGE:

• Third Party Civil Liability: If you are at fault in an auto accident this coverage pays for the bodily injury to other people and pays for damage to the property of others. It does not cover injury to a passenger in your vehicle (see description of Medical Payments below) nor to damage to property of passengers in your vehicle.

  If you do not have an auto liability insurance policy at the time of an accident, and if you do not have enough cash in your pocket to pay for the damages and injuries you caused, you will go to jail and your vehicle will be impounded. That’s the law.

  A question people often ask is “How much liability insurance do I need?” On November 30, 2012 Mexican federal laws were revised to significantly increase the amount of financial responsibility that can be assessed against the at-fault person. The amount varies by state. It is equivalent to US $543,754 in two states and more than US $300,000 in five other states and the Federal District.

  Because of these new, higher limits of financial responsibility, we recommend you consider selecting the highest limit of liability offered.

• Medical Payments: Pays for medical care for occupants of your vehicle who are injured in a motor vehicle accident.
• Legal Assistance/Bail Bond: Provides professional (lawyer) legal assistance to resolve legal problems arising from an auto accident involving the insured vehicle.
• Travel Assistance: Provides a basic package of assistance for travelers.

THE FOLLOWING INSURANCE COVERAGES ARE IMPORTANT OPTIONS:

• Total Theft: Covers theft of your insured vehicle. Note: This does not cover contents inside your vehicle.
• Collision: Covers damage to your vehicle that occur in a motor vehicle accident, and damage caused by certain specified natural causes.
• MexVisit Travel Assistance: A valuable, comprehensive package of emergency medical, roadside, and travel assistance, and legal assistance coverage.
• Extended Coverage: These “upgrades”, mentioned earlier on this page, provide broader coverage and higher limits of coverage than that contained in the Standard Mexico Tourist Auto policy.

Upgraded Assistance Benefit

Many travelers, and especially winter visitors and long term residents of Mexico, like the peace of mind they get with MexVisit, a significant upgrade to the usual assistance coverage provided with Mexico Tourist Auto policies.

MexVisit provides benefits in three important areas:

• Emergency Medical Assistance: Land or air ambulance including air ambulance to your point of origin in the U.S. or Canada, medical referral, transportation and lodging for a travel companion during hospitalization, convalescence lodging expense, repatriation of remains, and more.
• Emergency Roadside Assistance: Flat tire service, out-of-gas, keys locked in vehicle, dead battery, $300 towing, 2 day car rental and hotel expense due to vehicle breakdown, and more.
• Travel Assistance: Emergency communication and messaging, assistance to file and recover lost travel documents, emergency money transfer, translation service, lost or stolen credit cards and travelers check assistance, communication with embassy or consulate, and more.

MexVisit is a real bargain, so be sure to compare the premium for your insurance policy including this valuable protection.

Towing a Trailer?

To have liability coverage in case you are towing something, you must declare it on the Quote Request Form/application. If you show the trailer, it will print on your policy and thus prevent coverage from being voided for failure to declare that you are towing. As an option, you can insure the trailer for Theft and Collision, but you must at least show the trailer on the policy so as not to void the liability on the vehicle towing the trailer.

If you are hauling motorcycles in the back of a pickup or in a trailer, or a boat on a trailer, they too must be declared on the application to avoid the possibility of all coverage from being voided in the event of an accident, even if you chose not to insure the motorcycle or boat & trailer for Theft and Collision. If you insure the boat for Theft and Collision, this coverage only applies when the boat is loaded on the trailer and the trailer is hitched to the tow vehicle.

If you also want to cover your trailer for damage in an accident and for theft, simply select the value of the trailer from the drop-down menu in the space provided on the Quote Request Form.