For the Property & Casualty exam, Washington's auto questions reward students who understand one big idea: Washington is a tort (at-fault) state, not a no-fault state. The driver who causes a crash is financially responsible, and injured parties recover from that at-fault driver. The Personal Auto Policy (PAP) is the contract that delivers the coverages, while Washington law sets the mandatory minimums and the rules for offering optional protection. This guide covers the national PAP structure, then anchors everything in Washington's specific rules under RCW Title 48 (insurance) and the state's financial-responsibility law.

The national PAP structure (Parts A–F)

The ISO Personal Auto Policy is organized into six parts you should know cold:

• Part A – Liability. Pays bodily injury and property damage you cause to others (third-party coverage); includes the duty to defend.
• Part B – Medical Payments. Pays reasonable medical (and funeral) expenses for you and your passengers, regardless of fault.
• Part C – Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists (UM/UIM). Pays when an at-fault driver has no insurance or too little.
• Part D – Coverage for Damage to Your Auto. Collision and comprehensive (other than collision) pay to repair or replace your own vehicle.
• Part E – Duties After an Accident or Loss. What the insured must do to be covered.
• Part F – General Provisions. Policy territory, termination, legal action, and similar mechanics.

Washington is an at-fault (tort) state

Unlike a no-fault state, Washington lets an injured person pursue the at-fault driver for all damages—medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. To split responsibility when more than one party is careless, Washington uses pure comparative negligence:

• A claimant's recovery is reduced by their own percentage of fault.
• Even a claimant who is mostly at fault can still recover the remaining percentage. For example, a driver found 80% at fault can still collect 20% of their damages.
• This differs from "modified" comparative states that bar recovery once a claimant passes 50% or 51% fault. Washington has no such cutoff—that is the trap.

Washington's required coverages

To drive legally in Washington, an owner must show financial responsibility, most commonly by carrying liability insurance with these minimum limits:

• Bodily injury liability: $25,000 per person / $50,000 per accident.
• Property damage liability: $10,000 per accident.

These are commonly written as 25/50/10. Drivers may instead satisfy the law through other approved means (such as a bond or deposit/self-insurance), but a standard liability policy is the usual path. Driving without proof of financial responsibility can lead to penalties and license consequences.

PIP must be offered (the insured may reject)

Washington does not mandate Personal Injury Protection (PIP), but it does require insurers to offer it on new and renewed auto policies. Key rules:

• If the buyer wants to decline PIP, they must reject it in writing; otherwise the insurer adds it (and charges for it).
• PIP pays the insured's own medical costs, a portion of lost wages, and related expenses regardless of fault.
• Commonly cited baseline PIP medical is $10,000 (often available up to $35,000), with separate sub-limits for wage loss, loss of services, and funeral expenses—treat the exact figures as numbers to verify.

UM/UIM must be offered

Uninsured motorist (UM) pays when you're hurt by an at-fault driver who has no insurance; underinsured motorist (UIM) pays when the at-fault driver's limits are too low. In Washington, UM/UIM must be offered, and the insured may reject it (commonly in writing). Washington's UM/UIM can apply to both bodily injury and, when purchased, property damage.

Physical damage and other coverages

Collision and comprehensive are first-party coverages for the insured's own vehicle and are not legally required—but a lienholder (lender) almost always requires them. Comprehensive covers non-collision losses such as theft, fire, glass, and animal strikes, while collision covers impact with another vehicle or object.

Cancellation and nonrenewal

Washington regulates how an auto policy can be ended, with the protections tightening once a policy has been in force for a while:

• New business window. During roughly the first 30–60 days, an insurer is still underwriting and can cancel more freely (verify the exact window), but it must give written notice.
• After the underwriting period, cancellation is limited to specific allowed reasons—commonly nonpayment of premium, license/registration suspension, or fraud/material misrepresentation.
• Advance written notice is required; commonly 10 days for nonpayment and a longer period (often around 20–45 days) for other cancellations or nonrenewal (verify).
• The notice must state the reason and explain the insured's rights, including the ability to complain to the OIC.

High-risk drivers who can't find coverage in the standard market use Washington's market-of-last-resort mechanism (commonly the Washington Automobile Insurance Plan / WAIP).

Key Washington numbers to memorize

Common exam traps

• Calling Washington a no-fault state. It is tort/at-fault; the at-fault driver pays.
• Applying a 50%/51% bar. Washington is pure comparative negligence—a claimant can recover even when mostly at fault.
• Treating PIP or UM/UIM as mandatory. Both must be offered but can be rejected in writing.
• Forgetting the rejection requirement for PIP. If there's no written rejection on file, PIP is generally deemed in force.
• Confusing Part B medical payments / PIP (your injuries, no-fault) with Part A liability (others' injuries).
• Assuming collision/comprehensive are required by the state. They are required by lenders, not Washington law.

Quick recap

Washington is a tort (at-fault) auto state that applies pure comparative negligence, so an injured person recovers from the at-fault driver with damages reduced by their own share of fault—even if they were mostly to blame. The mandatory liability minimum is 25/50/10 ($25k/$50k bodily injury, $10k property damage). PIP and UM/UIM must be offered but can be rejected in writing, while collision and comprehensive are optional under state law (though lenders demand them). Map those rules onto the PAP's Parts A–F, and Washington's P&C auto questions become reliable points.