Imagine you’re on your way to the office when you’re rear-ended on the interstate, causing you to run off the road and slam into a concrete barrier.
You’re badly hurt, suffering a broken ankle, among other injuries and face months of treatment and multiple surgeries.
Unable to get back to work while in recovery, you lose over $150,000 in income and rack up medical bills amounting to more than $120,000. Oh, and you’re unable to walk long distances, let alone ski or mountain bike, and so your lifestyle has definitely taken a turn for the worse.
But wait. Things get even more unpleasant. The driver of the other vehicle carried just their state’s minimum limits of $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident on their policy. You receive the full $25,000 available, but not a penny more. Everything else comes out of your pocket.
Unless, of course, your own policy included uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist coverage.
With UM/UIM limits of $500,000, your medical bills get covered. Better still, if your umbrella policy has an additional $1 million of UM/UIM coverage, your own insurer was able to pay for whatever else the other driver could not.
Despite this very simple formula, some people still seem to prefer to roll the dice on uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. It’s really hard to understand why, especially given that roughly 1 in 7 drivers is uninsured. Add to that the number of drivers who carry only their state’s minimum auto limits, and it’s enough to make you want to stay off the roads for good.
So think of it this way: You’ve already bought an umbrella policy to help you pay for the recovery of strangers you might have injured. Wouldn’t you want to do the same for yourself and family, instead of relying on someone who might not have insurance at all?
By the way, having health insurance doesn’t mean not having to buy UM or UIM coverage. Health insurance, remember, won’t cover property damage, but UIM will.
Also, UIM will help pay for all of those health insurance deductibles and co-pays, as well as alternative treatments, including visits to the chiropractor, that might not be covered by your health plan.
Mike Rosser leads the Private Client practice at CCIG. Reach him at Mike.Rosser@thinkccig.com or 720-212-2068.
CCIG is a Denver-area insurance, employee benefits and surety brokerage with clients nationwide. We do more than make sure you have the right policy. We help you manage your long-term cost of insurance with our risk and claims management expertise and a commitment to service excellence.