Why You Should Speak with Your Insurance Agent before a Car Crash
On behalf of Brown & Crouppen, P.C. posted in Motor Vehicle Accident on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Every driver knows the requirement to carry insurance on his or her vehicle in order to legally operate it on the highway. In addition, every state has minimum levels of coverage for bodily injury and property damage that can result from car and truck accidents.
However, that does not mean most drivers understand their coverage. This time of year, with slick roads, bad weather, holiday parties, and early sunsets, can provide a host of dangerous conditions that can leave you at risk for being injured in a car accident. Reviewing your insurance coverage is a good way to ensure you have the coverage you need, should an accident occur.
While Missouri mandates coverage levels, you may want to discuss this topic with your insurance agent, as those levels may not be adequate for you and your family. Take the $25,000 limit for per person bodily injury and $50,000 per accident.
This mean your policy will only pay $25,000 for each injured person in an accident, and only $50,000 total, no matter how many people were injured. Considering the cost of time in a hospital, doctor’s charges and other healthcare expenses, you may find that you coverage only protects you from a minor fender bender, and if you were in a severe accident with severe injuries or fatalities, your policy limits could be quickly overwhelmed.
Another function your car insurance policy is not designed for is replacing your life insurance. While you can sue a driver who has caused an accident, in Missouri, about 14 percent of drivers are uninsured, and may have few other assets.
Source: FoxBusiness.com, “Car Insurance is Not Life Insurance,” Aaron Crowe, January 7, 2013