Protect Yourself With The Appropriate Auto Insurance Coverage
March 28, 2020 • By George Saba
Auto insurance can get very expensive, especially if you have multiple vehicles or young drivers, but not having the proper auto coverage can result in financial disaster for you or your family.
Perhaps the most important coverage you can purchase is underinsured and uninsured motorist protection. This coverage is written to protect you and your family in the event you are injured in an accident, through no fault of your own, with an underinsured or uninsured motorist.
For example, let’s say you are driving safely and approaching an intersection with a green light. You look both ways and proceed into the intersection when you are struck broadside by a drunk driver who ignored the red light. Not only is your vehicle badly damaged, but you have suffered injuries. Compounding the issue --the other driver only has the state required minimum coverage of $15,000—not even enough to cover your out-of-pocket expenses. Unfortunately, if you have no underinsured motorist protection through you own policy, you may be limited to a recovery of $15,000, no matter what the verdict is against the negligent driver.
Now, let’s assume you were smart enough to purchase underinsured motorist protection. After recovering the $15,000, you can proceed under your own policy, up to the underinsured policy limits you purchased.
Uninsured motorists protection offers protection if you are injured by a negligent driver with no insurance. While this is a very uncommon occurrence, uninsured motorist protection also protects you if are involved in a “hit & run” and the negligent driver is never identified. It may also protect you if somebody leaves an object in the road.
Let’s assume a carpet or lumber has fallen off a truck and is left in the roadway and the source is never identified. You strike the object causing your vehicle to go out of control and hit a guardrail. You are injured. That type of claim would fall under a claim for uninsured motorist benefits.
Uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist claims can be decided in court or through arbitration, depending on policy language. Keep in mind that you would still need to prove that the accident was the fault of the other party, and that your injuries resulted from the accident, but, at the very least, you have a source of potential recovery.
When purchasing your auto coverage, make sure you ask your agent about uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist. It can get complicated. When deciding on your coverage, keep in mind the following selections you will need to make:
1. Full Tort v. Limited Tort- Always select the full tort option. It will also apply to any claim for uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist. Limited Tort cases can be very difficult and may result in lower recovery or none, at all. With Limited Tort, unless your injury is a permanent impairment of a bodily function, you may be precluded from any recovery for your pain and suffering. Full Tort is not that much more expensive and well worth the extra cost for the protection.
2. Stacking - This option will allow you to “stack” the uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist coverages on your policy according to the number of vehicles. For example, if you purchased $100,000 of underinsured motorist coverage and have two vehicles in your household, stacked coverage will allow you to recover $200,000 (2 x $100,000). Non-stacked coverage will limit recovery to one vehicle or $100,000. Stacking options should be provided to you at inception and when you add (not replace) an additional car to a policy.
3. Liability limits and uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist - Purchase the highest liability limits you can afford and make sure your uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist are equal to the liability coverage, since you can purchase coverage for less than your liability limits. Many times, the cost difference between $100,000 and $300,000 is fairly minimal.
4. Uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist protection is not an expensive option. If you decline the coverage, you must do it in writing and execute a waiver.
5. Single policy - Consider insuring you and your family members on one policy rather than separate policies. If you must have separate policies, try and keep them with the same company. This may serve to offer you better protection in the event of a uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist.
Most of the expense of your policy is based on the protection of your vehicle and not you. That is why different vehicles cost more than others. The declarations page that arrives with your policy will contain a breakdown of your coverages. Make sure you read it and it accurately represents your coverage choices.
Review your coverages on a yearly basis, or at renewal. If you need to make changes, make sure you receive verification. Keep all your forms in a safe place. We will need to review them in the event you have a loss. If you are involved in an accident, report the loss to your agent or carrier as soon as possible.
Accidents, at the least, can be a significant disruption in your life. Serious accidents, however, are life-altering. Make sure you take the steps to protect yourself and your family. Please call us at 215-362-2474 if we can be of assistance.