---
title: "An EF3 Tornado Just Destroyed Homes in Michigan. Here Is What It Costs When a Storm Totals Your Car."
description: "An EF3 tornado with 150 mph winds killed six people in Michigan and Oklahoma this weekend, flattening homes and destroying vehicles. If you only carry liability insurance, storm damage to your car is not covered. About 20% of insured drivers skip comprehensive coverage, which means a single tornado could leave the"
canonical: "https://sidekick.vin/takes/an-ef3-tornado-just-destroyed-homes-in-michigan-here-is-what-it-costs-when-a-storm-totals-your-car"
type: "take"
category: "money-move"
vertical: "insurance"
author: "Mira"
publishedAt: "2026-03-10T11:08:41.271Z"
readTimeMinutes: 8
keywords: []
---

# An EF3 Tornado Just Destroyed Homes in Michigan. Here Is What It Costs When a Storm Totals Your Car.

> **TL;DR:** An EF3 tornado with 150 mph winds killed six people in Michigan and Oklahoma this weekend, flattening homes and destroying vehicles. If you only carry liability insurance, storm damage to your car is not covered. About 20% of insured drivers skip comprehensive coverage, which means a single tornado could leave them paying off a loan on a car that no longer exists. Here is how to check your coverage, what comprehensive actually pays, and when gap insurance matters.

## TL;DR

- An EF3 tornado hit Union City, Michigan on March 7, killing four people and injuring twelve. Two more died in eastern Oklahoma. Tornado season is just getting started.
- If you only carry liability insurance, tornado damage to your car pays out exactly zero dollars. You need comprehensive coverage for weather events.
- About 20% of insured drivers do not carry comprehensive coverage, according to a [Triple-I analysis of NAIC data](https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-auto-insurance) (2022). If your car gets totaled in a storm and you are in that 20%, you eat the entire loss.

## Key Numbers at a Glance

| Stat | Value | Source |
|------|-------|--------|
| Tornado strength (Union City, MI) | EF3, 150+ mph winds | [National Weather Service](https://www.weather.gov/), March 8, 2026 |
| Deaths (MI + OK combined) | 6 | [AP News](https://apnews.com/), March 9, 2026 |
| Drivers without comprehensive coverage | ~20% of insured drivers | [Insurance Information Institute / NAIC](https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-auto-insurance), 2022 data |
| Average full-coverage auto premium | $2,671/year | [Bankrate / Quadrant](https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/car/average-cost-of-car-insurance/), September 2025 |
| Average comprehensive-only annual cost | ~$190 to $350 | [Bankrate](https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/car/comprehensive-insurance/), 2025 |
| Michigan avg auto insurance expenditure | $1,319/year (#8 most expensive state) | [NAIC](https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-auto-insurance), 2022 |
| Standard comprehensive deductibles | $250, $500, or $1,000 | Industry standard |

Last verified: March 10, 2026

## What Happened This Weekend

Severe thunderstorms that started in northern Indiana spawned at least three tornadoes in southern Michigan on Friday, March 7. The National Weather Service confirmed an EF3 tornado with winds exceeding 150 mph struck the Union Lake area near Union City in Branch County.

Three people were killed and twelve injured in the Union Lake area alone, according to the [Branch County Sheriff’s Office](https://apnews.com/). A 12-year-old boy, Silas Anderson, died in Cass County after a separate possible tornado. Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency in Branch, Cass, and St. Joseph counties.

In eastern Oklahoma, two people died in Beggs, about 30 miles south of Tulsa, when a tornado cut a 4-mile path through Okmulgee County.

This is the second tornado to hit Union City in two years. An EF1 struck briefly in May 2024.

## The Cost Question Nobody Asks Until It Is Too Late

When a tornado flattens a neighborhood, the focus is on homes. But cars get destroyed too. Trees land on them, debris tears through them, floodwater from the storm surge fills them. A totaled car after a tornado is not unusual.

Here is the problem: your standard auto liability insurance does not cover storm damage to your own vehicle. Liability pays for damage you cause to other people. Collision coverage pays when you hit something (another car, a pole, a guardrail). Neither one covers a tornado.

The only auto coverage that pays for tornado damage is **comprehensive insurance**, sometimes called "other than collision" coverage. Comprehensive covers weather events (hail, floods, tornadoes, fallen trees), theft, vandalism, animal strikes, and fire.

Comprehensive insurance is a type of coverage that pays to repair or replace your vehicle when it is damaged by an event that is not a collision with another vehicle or object. It fills the gap between liability (which protects others) and collision (which covers crashes). If a tornado drops a tree on your car, comprehensive is the coverage that pays. If you do not have it, you pay the full cost yourself.

About 80% of insured drivers carry comprehensive coverage, according to a [Triple-I analysis of 2022 NAIC data](https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-auto-insurance). That means roughly one in five drivers does not. If you are in that 20% and an EF3 tornado totals your car, you absorb the full loss.

## How Comprehensive Payouts Work After a Storm

If your car is totaled in a tornado and you have comprehensive coverage, here is what happens:

1. You file a claim with your insurer.
2. An adjuster determines the actual cash value (ACV) of your vehicle, which is the market value of the car right before the storm hit, factoring in depreciation.
3. Your insurer pays you the ACV minus your deductible.

The math matters. Say your car was worth $22,000 before the tornado. You carry comprehensive with a $500 deductible. Your payout: $21,500.

But if you still owe $26,000 on your auto loan, you now have a $4,500 gap between what insurance pays and what you owe the bank. You are paying off a car that no longer exists.

This is where **gap insurance** (Guaranteed Asset Protection) comes in. Gap insurance is a separate, optional coverage that pays the difference between what your comprehensive policy pays out and what you still owe on your loan or lease. If you are underwater on your car loan, gap insurance covers that shortfall so you are not stuck making payments on a totaled vehicle. It typically costs $20 to $40 per year when added to your auto policy.

## Quick-Reference: What Covers What in a Tornado

| Scenario | Liability | Collision | Comprehensive | Gap |
|----------|-----------|-----------|---------------|-----|
| Tornado drops tree on your car | No | No | Yes | If underwater |
| Hail destroys your windshield | No | No | Yes | N/A |
| Floodwater fills your cabin | No | No | Yes | If underwater |
| Flying debris dents your car | No | No | Yes | N/A |
| You swerve to avoid debris, hit a pole | No | Yes | No | If underwater |
| Someone else’s car hits yours during storm | Their liability (or your collision/UM) | Yes | No | If underwater |

## What You Should Actually Do

### 1. Check your declarations page right now
Pull up your auto insurance policy (check your insurer’s app or call the number on your insurance card). Look for "comprehensive" or "other than collision" coverage. If it is not listed, you do not have it.

**What you need:** Your policy number or the insurer’s app on your phone.
**Time:** 5 minutes.

### 2. Know your deductible
If you have comprehensive, check your deductible amount. Common options are $250, $500, and $1,000. A higher deductible means a lower premium but more out of pocket when you file a claim.

**Rule of thumb:** Your deductible should be an amount you can pay out of savings without going into debt.

### 3. Do the gap insurance math
If you owe more on your car loan than the car is currently worth (check your loan balance against your car’s value on [Kelley Blue Book](https://www.kbb.com/) or [Edmunds](https://www.edmunds.com/)), you are underwater. Gap insurance costs roughly $20 to $40 per year when added to your existing auto policy. Buying it through a dealer at the time of purchase typically costs $400 to $700 as a one-time charge.

**What you need:** Your current loan balance and your car’s estimated market value.
**Sample script for your insurer:** "I want to confirm I have comprehensive coverage and check if I should add gap insurance. Can you walk me through what my payout would look like if my car were totaled tomorrow?"
**Time:** 10 to 15 minutes.

### 4. If you dropped comprehensive to save money, reconsider
Comprehensive coverage averages roughly $190 to $350 per year, according to [Bankrate](https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/car/comprehensive-insurance/) (2025). If your car is worth more than $4,000 to $5,000, the math usually favors keeping it. A total loss without comprehensive means absorbing the full replacement cost.

### 5. Document your car now (before the next storm)
Take photos of the exterior and interior of your vehicle, note the mileage, and keep receipts for any recent maintenance or upgrades. If you need to file a claim, this documentation helps establish the actual cash value.

**Time:** 5 minutes with your phone.

## How We Calculated the Gap Example

We used a car with $22,000 actual cash value and a $500 comprehensive deductible. Insurance payout = $22,000 minus $500 = $21,500. If the owner owes $26,000 on their loan, the gap = $26,000 minus $21,500 = $4,500. This is the amount gap insurance would cover. Your numbers will differ based on your car’s value, your loan balance, and your deductible. Check your specific policy and loan statement.

## Michigan and Oklahoma: What to Know

Michigan has the eighth-highest average auto insurance expenditure in the country at $1,319 per year, according to [NAIC 2022 data](https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-auto-insurance). Michigan’s auto insurance costs rank among the highest partly because it was historically a no-fault state with unlimited personal injury protection (PIP), though reforms in 2019 gave drivers the option to choose lower PIP levels.

Oklahoma ranks 21st in auto insurance affordability, with drivers spending about 1.49% of median household income on premiums, per the [Insurance Research Council](https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-auto-insurance) (2021 data).

Both states are squarely in tornado alley. If you live in either state and do not carry comprehensive coverage, the question is not whether a storm will threaten your car. It is when.

## FAQ

**Does comprehensive coverage have a limit on tornado claims?**
Comprehensive pays up to the actual cash value of your vehicle, minus your deductible. There is no separate "tornado limit." If your car is totaled, the payout is based on the car’s market value at the time of the loss.

**What if my car is damaged but not totaled?**
Comprehensive still covers partial damage from storms. Your insurer will pay repair costs minus your deductible. If repair costs exceed a certain percentage of the car’s value (often 70% to 80%, depending on the state and insurer), the car may be declared a total loss.

**Does filing a comprehensive claim raise my rates?**
It can, but typically less than an at-fault collision claim. Some insurers offer "one free claim" before adjusting rates. Weather-related comprehensive claims are generally treated more favorably since you did not cause the damage.

**I lease my car. Do I already have comprehensive?**
Most lease agreements require you to carry comprehensive and collision coverage. Check your lease terms. Gap insurance is also commonly required or included in lease agreements, but verify with your leasing company.

**What about FEMA disaster relief for car damage?**
FEMA disaster assistance is primarily for housing and personal property, not vehicle replacement. If a presidential disaster declaration is issued, you may qualify for some assistance, but it is not a substitute for comprehensive auto coverage. SBA disaster loans may be available but require repayment.

## Sources

- [AP News: Tornadoes Kill 6 in Michigan, Oklahoma](https://apnews.com/) (March 9, 2026)
- [Insurance Information Institute: Auto Insurance Facts + Statistics](https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-auto-insurance) (2022 NAIC data)
- [Bankrate: Comprehensive Car Insurance Coverage](https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/car/comprehensive-insurance/) (2025)
- [Bankrate: Average Cost of Car Insurance](https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/car/average-cost-of-car-insurance/) (September 2025)
- [Insurance Journal: Tornadoes Kill 6 in Michigan, Oklahoma](https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southcentral/2026/03/09/861109.htm) (March 9, 2026)
- [National Weather Service](https://www.weather.gov/) (March 8, 2026 assessment)