What is Uninsured Motorist Coverage and Why Buy It?
Most of us purchase automobile insurance because we are required to. Some of us shop around and look for the best deal. You may either purchase your automobile insurance policy from an agent of a well-known company or you may choose a broker, who will find you the best deal. Whoever you choose, will sell you insurance after you fill out a questionnaire about your driving history and background. Most people are interested in getting coverage and not paying a lot for it. Of course, the minimum requirements of the State of California are that you carry liability insurance of $15,000.00/$30,000.00/$5,000.00. This means that if you cause an automobile accident, you can respond in damages up to the $15,000.00 per person that you purchased for bodily injuries, and if more than one person injured, you purchased up to $30,000.00 to respond in damages for bodily injuries for two or more persons. The $5,000.00 is to respond in damages for property damages you may have caused.
Your agent or broker is supposed to explain your choices of coverage before you decide to purchase. We are well aware that one’s budget is taken into consideration. The more coverage you purchase the more of a monthly, semi-annual, or yearly premium you will pay. Not everyone can buy expensive auto insurance. That is why it is so important to pick the right coverage. An example will explain what I mean. You purchased the required liability coverage in case you caused an accident and you also purchased collision coverage in case your vehicle is damaged in an accident and it needs repairs or replacement. So now you are at a stop light, seat-belted, on your way to work, and all of a sudden someone cannot stop in time and rear ends your vehicle. You exchange information like the law requires and you make a claim to the other party’s insurance company that they provided. Weeks pass by and you hear nothing. No phone call and no written response. You are frustrated and you hire a lawyer. The lawyer finds out that there is no coverage from the insurance company information that was given to you.
You are hurt and need treatment. You have no health insurance, private or government assistance. No lawyer wants your case because there is no insurance coverage. How could this have been prevented? If you had opted to purchase uninsured motorist coverage, you would be protected. Usually, the agent or broker will explain the different coverage and then you must choose which to purchase. Uninsured motorist coverage is exactly what it says. If you are involved in an accident and the other driver had no auto insurance, then you can make a claim to your own insurance company under your uninsured motorist coverage. Your own insurance company will step into the shoes of the uninsured driver and pay for the damages that the uninsured driver would have paid had he/she been properly insured. You will not be penalized for making an uninsured motorist claim to your insurance company. They will pursue the at fault party.
If you purchased the minimum amount of uninsured motorist coverage of $15,000.00 per person and $30,000.00 per occurrence, then you can get medical treatment and pain and suffering damages up to the limit that you purchased. In this example, $15,000.00. That does not prevent you from buying more coverage, for example, $25,000.00 per person and $50,000.00 per occurrence. And, if you really want to protect yourself, and depending on your budget, you can buy more. That will lead me into another topic for another discussion called Underinsured Motorist Coverage. With Underinsured Motorist Coverage, your insurance will cover that part of your injury claim over what the at fault party insurance covered with their policy limit.