One of The Orlando Law Group’s main goals is to help you avoid problems before they happen. We cannot control the possibility of chaos, but we can give you armor so that when the unexpected strikes, you are ready, capable, and protected. We take trends that we are privy to and apply our experience so that you can remain informed.
Uninsured motorists, or underinsured motorist insurance coverage are both terms that you may have heard of, but many times these products are known without a deep understanding of why they are so necessary and how they can help you. Let us dive into those details and why they matter so much.
Orlando Drivers Take Note: Uninsured Motorist Coverage
In Florida, you are required to have anything other than $10,000 for property damage caused to the other person’s vehicle. In addition to that, you are also provided $10,000 of personal injury protection, or what we call PIP. That is considered full coverage in Florida, believe it or not. What does that mean if you are hit by someone who only has that coverage? If you are not carrying uninsured motorist coverage, or underinsured motorist coverage, that means that there is nothing for your medical bills. Your insurance company considers uninsured motorists and underinsured motorists as existing in one group.
The truth is that those two insurance coverages are different, and we are going to explain a little bit of the differences to help you understand why they should not be considered the same. Uninsured motorist coverage would be an example of a hit-and-run, or a documented accident where you were not at fault.
Here is an example. You have been in an accident. There is clearly documented evidence that you were not at fault, and the other person is not carrying any bodily injury coverage. Where does that leave you? You then would need to call your insurance company and provide them the information about the accident. If you are carrying uninsured motorist coverage, they would then provide those benefits to you.
This is extremely important. We run across these policies often, and many times people do not have this coverage. It is heartbreaking to tell them that the person that injured them was not carrying coverage to pay their medical bills, and unfortunately, they also did not elect for uninsured motorist vehicle coverage, so they are left without any way to pay. It is important to understand uninsured motorist coverage because Orlando has a lot of drivers who might be affected, and we do not want you to suffer because you were not informed. The best knowledge is being informed of all your options.
The Other One: Underinsured Motorist Vehicle Coverage
Underinsured motorist vehicle coverage is different. For example, consider the possibility that you get hit by another car that only carries $10,000 worth of bodily injury coverage, and you sustain an injury that requires surgery. It is revealed that the surgery far exceeds that amount.
Once the at-fault policy tenders the $10,000; you would then call your insurance and tell them that you’ve been offered the 10,000 by the other party, and that you have to get their permission to then tap into your underinsured motorist vehicle coverage. Your claim must be worth more than the amount that you were paid by the other party in order to access your underinsured motorist vehicle coverage or UIM.
This is vital because a lot of people underestimate the medical expenses that can be accrued when you have been in an accident. While you may have assistance with bodily injury, anytime, that may not be good enough. Everyone knows how expensive medical bills can be if they are only carrying $10,000. The cheap option is not the best, and you may have a surgery that is going to cost $100,000. You need help with an expense like that. Policies that protect you from pitfalls we often see are armor to us. They keep us protected and informed, and it is impossible not to care when so many get taken advantage of because they simply did not consider their options before the accident happened.
If you are looking at your policy and you find that it can be confusing, and you are thinking to yourself, “I don’t know what else I may need in the future,” we can do a free review of your policy to see what you can do to better protect yourself. Contact us or give us a call at 407-512-4394. We will be happy to help you out.
Last Updated on May 7, 2020 by The Orlando Law Group
