Protect Yourself with Uninsured Motorist Coverage
If you are in a car accident and the at-fault driver does not have any insurance or not enough to cover your damages, your own uninsured/underinsured coverage will apply to cover your losses.
June 26, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Protect Yourself with Uninsured Motorist Coverage
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Uninsured or underinsured motorist insurance (also known as UM/UIM) may be the most important coverage you can have. If you are in a car accident and the at-fault driver does not have any insurance or not enough coverage to compensate you for all your damages and expenses, your own uninsured/underinsured coverage will apply to cover your losses. Serious auto accidents can result in severe, debilitating injuries, loss of income and extensive property damage, all of which can be expensive. Additionally, UM/UIM coverage provides compensation for pain and suffering and other non-economical losses. In many cases the at-fault driver's insurance is not enough to cover these expenses. That is why it is so important to protect yourself with UM/UIM coverage.
What are Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Insurance?
Uninsured motorist insurance provides coverage to a policy holder when the at-fault party does not have auto insurance. It includes underinsured motorist insurance, which provides coverage to a policy holder when the at-fault driver does not have enough liability insurance to cover the injuries and damages sustained by the policy holder in the accident. Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage provides coverage not only to the occupants of your vehicle but also to any family member residing in your home when they are injured in a motor vehicle accident, whether as a passenger in someone else's vehicle, a bicyclist, pedestrian, or as the victim of a hit and run accident. Under California law, insurance companies are required to offer drivers uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage when they purchase automobile liability coverage. This coverage is so important that the California Insurance Code requires that a driver who does not want UM/UIM coverage must reject it in writing.
As an example, if you are injured by a driver who does not have any automobile liability insurance, your uninsured motorist coverage will compensate you for your medical bills, loss of earnings and pain and suffering. Another example is if you are hit by a driver that has the minimum liability coverage, but the value of your claim exceeds the amount of the at-fault driver's coverage. In that case, your underinsured coverage would make up the difference, up to your policy limits, between the at-fault driver's coverage and the full value of your losses and damages. In serious car accidents, the injured party's medical expenses, property damage, lost wages and pain and suffering are likely to vastly exceed the state required liability minimums.
Why is Uninsured Motorist Coverage Important?
Most drivers in California carry the minimum amount of liability insurance required by law ($15,000 per person/$30,000 per accident). In addition, in the present economic environment, many people do not have any car insurance. If you are hit by a driver that only has the minimum coverage, there is a very real chance that his or her coverage will not cover all your injuries and expenses. Medical services are expensive, and costs increase every year. As a result of a serious car accident, injured people can easily run up medical bills in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for surgeries, hospital stays and physical therapy.
Generally speaking, suing the at-fault driver for more than the limits of his or her liability coverage is not feasible, unless he or she is independently wealthy or has substantial assets. While most individuals with substantial assets purchase sufficient insurance to protect those assets, the majority of the drivers in California do not have adequate insurance coverage or assets to fully compensate those they injure. Thus, your own uninsured/underinsured coverage will be necessary to fully compensate you for your injuries and losses.
How Much Uninsured Motorist Coverage Should I Have?
The minimum automobile liability and uninsured coverage in California has been $15,000 per person/$30,000 per accident for over 30 years, without any adjustment for inflation. Most people carry this minimum, but in order to be protected for injuries and losses, it is a good idea to have at least $100,000 per person/$300,000 per accident for both liability and uninsured motorist coverage, or higher limits such as $250,000/$500,000 or $500,000/$1,000,000. As mentioned above, a severe auto accident can result in medical expenses that can easily amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars, not including property damage, lost wages and pain and suffering.
Once a policy holder pays for the minimum UM/UIM coverage, to increase it to higher coverage generally only costs a few dollars more per month. This relatively small increase in cost amounts to a significant increase in benefits.
It may also be a good idea to purchase an umbrella policy that provides an additional $1 million or more of coverage. An umbrella policy may also provide an additional source of coverage if the policy holder is in an accident caused by an uninsured or underinsured motorist where his or her losses are greater than the limits of the UM/UIM policy. Many insurance companies allow an umbrella policyholder to add UM/UIM coverage to the same amount as the liability limits carried by the policyholder.
The potential for being involved in an automobile accident and being seriously injured is something that every driver must consider. Now would be a good time to review your insurance policy to make sure that you and your family are adequately protected.
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