GAP insurance can provide valuable protection during the early years of your car's life if you have a loan or a lease.
If a loss occurs, GAP insurance will pay the difference between the actual cash value of the vehicle and the current outstanding balance on your loan or lease. Gap Insurance protects your vehicle lease or loan. Sometimes it will also pay your regular insurance deductible.
If your vehicle has been totaled by accident, theft, fire, flood, tornado, vandalism, or hurricanes your insurance company typically pays the actual cash value. That may be less than its actual retail value. It is often considerably less than the actual amount you still owe on your loan or the amount due for a lease payoff.
The amount between your insurance deductible and the loss from this financial shortfall is the “gap” you can be left owing.