What Is Underinsured Motorist Coverage?
An addition to your auto coverage policy is the underinsured motorcyclist coverage. It protects your rights if someone in an accident involves you who doesn’t own enough insurance. The at-fault person’s insurance is required to compensate the victim in an accident. If the accident victim’s policy limits the coverage to the extent of the damage, the injured party could get underinsured motorist insurance. Uninsured coverage will not cover an injured party if the at-fault driver doesn’t have any insurance. Only a handful of states require coverage for motorists who are not insured, and more require coverage that covers uninsured motorists.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Underinsured Motorist coverage protects you in the event that an accident occurs and the at-fault party doesn’t have enough insurance. This coverage can help in case of an accident and is relatively affordable. Some states require drivers that they have coverage for underinsured motorcyclists. Other states require greater coverage for uninsured motorcyclists.
Understanding Underinsured Motorist Coverage
If someone is in an accident and it’s not their fault, but the other driver doesn’t have enough coverage to cover the damages then the underinsured coverage kicks on. Once you file a claim with your provider, it will contact other driver’s insurance to make payment. If the other driver doesn’t have enough coverage to cover your expenses properly, the underinsured policy would suffice, up to the limits of your policy. Consider that you have $250,000 in automobile and medical damage. The insurance policy of the other driver covers only $100,000. The amount you have to pay can be repaid to your insurance company, subject only the policy’s limits. The accident cost you actually incurred is the maximum amount that you can request. Some insurance companies will limit the time that you can wait to file your underinsured case. These limits vary from company to company, but they could be as low as thirty days. In order to settle your claim, the insurance company will require billings and copies of any medical bills. If the insurer decides that costs submitted in support of the claim are unnecessary, or not related the accident, the company will deny payment. If the policyholder disagrees, the case will normally go to binding arbitration.
Benefits of Underinsured Motorist Coverage
It is a very affordable add-on to an auto insurance policy. But it can be beneficial if the driver found at fault has not enough insurance to cover the damages. That was more common than you think. According to Insurance Research Council in U.S. motorists does not have any insurance. Even if someone does have insurance, the minimum amount they need may be less than what is required by law. Virginia and New Hampshire, the two states in the USA that don’t require any minimum level of auto insurance coverage, are Virginia and New Hampshire. Every state has financial liability laws. That means, even if no insurance is required, you have to prove you can cover the damages you cause. Insurance providers offer a range of coverage options for underinsured driver coverage. Some coverage will only cover bodily harm, while others will cover damage to property. Some will also cover the costs of both.