We posed this question to Jeremy Jivan, a Farmers^® agent in Barberton, Ohio, who is knowledgeable about auto insurance (and has seen a pesky animal or two).

A:Answer I can’t remember the last time I saw a squirrel pitching pine cones, but I do know that my customers are no strangers to animal encounters. They’re more common than you might think.

A few years back, a small animal (still unidentified) wiggled into a customer’s car and wreaked havoc on the interior. It was chewed, gnawed and clawed to shreds. Now, imagine the cost of replacing every inch of upholstery, carpeting and trim in your car. Fortunately, the customer had comprehensive coverage on his auto policy, so Farmers covered the damage. While coverage ultimately depends on the facts and circumstances of a claim, this optional coverage may provide coverage when you are faced with the inconvenient forces of nature, including pinecone-pitching squirrels, a goat stampede or mice making themselves at home in your engine.

Comprehensive insurance also covers damage to your car that’s not the result of a collision with another vehicle or stationary object. That means you could be covered for damage like a rock cracking your windshield to a lightning strike that fries the electrical system. Even damage caused by your own pet is covered because, after all, animals will be animals.

Along with collision insurance, comprehensive can be a valuable additional coverage for your car. It’s optional in most states, but usually required by lenders and leasing companies. If you no longer carry collision on your car, you can still get comprehensive by itself.

Here are more examples of what comprehensive auto insurance may cover:

• Theft, vandalism, riots
• Wind, hail, floods, lightning
• Hitting a deer or other animal
• Damage caused by animals
• Falling or flying objects
• Fires and explosions

As you can see, there’s a reason we call it “comprehensive.” It often covers many things you would never think of, like squirrels fastballing pine cones.

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