How Does Uninsured Motorist Coverage Work?
The numbers are mind-boggling and instantly make it easy to understand why uninsured motorist coverage is such a good idea. Imagine driving on a crowded street or highway in Pennsylvania. You can probably picture 10 cars driving on the road with you. According to insurance statistics, 1 of those 10 drivers is either uninsured or underinsured. And Pennsylvania is better than most states when it comes to motorists without insurance. In states like Mississippi, nearly 1 out of every 4 drivers is uninsured or underinsured.
Uninsured Coverage Not Expensive
So, the question many people have is exactly how does uninsured motorist coverage work? Isn’t car insurance required by law? That’s correct, but the type of insurance Pennsylvania and other states require is basic liability coverage. That’s the part of your policy with three dollar amounts that indicate coverage limits for a single personal injury, all injuries in an accident and all property damage. There is no legal requirement that your auto policy must include uninsured motorist coverage – or collision or comprehensive coverages, for that matter.
Virtually all experts strongly recommend purchasing uninsured motorist coverage for a couple of reasons. First, the coverage is a relatively inexpensive part of your policy. Second, there are more and more drivers on the road without insurance.
Protection When the Other Driver has no Insurance
Here’s how it works in Pennsylvania: You choose the amount of coverage per person injured and for each accident. Let’s say you decide on $100,000 in coverage per person and $300,000 in total uninsured motorist coverage per incident. Then, if you are involved in an accident, the uninsured motorist limits kick in when the other driver is at fault and either has no insurance or insufficient coverage to pay for property damage and injuries.
Stack Coverage for Multiple Vehicles
One other important element of uninsured motorist coverage in Pennsylvania involves stacking. If you have more than one vehicle on the same policy, you can maximize your coverage by including or stacking the uninsured motorist coverage on each vehicle. Let’s say you insured both of your vehicles for $100,000 per person injured and $300,000 for each wreck. If you are then seriously injured in an accident that’s not your fault, you have a total of $200,000 in available coverage because of the stacking.
Can You Afford Not to Have Uninsured Coverage
What happens if you don’t have coverage for wrecks with drivers without insurance? The hospital bills would be paid from your own insurance policy, if there is enough money available, with the rest coming from your pocket. How this will affect your rates or if it places you as a candidate to have your insurance terminated depends on the individual policies of your insurer.