You have a young driver in your household who gets in a car accident causing injuries to people in another car. If you have typical auto insurance, liability limits of $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident, how far do you think the $100,000 will go? Particularly if the people involved suffer injuries that keep them from working for months or years. The accident victims could sue you for medical bills, lost income, or pain and suffering. In this scenario, $100,000 is not nearly enough coverage.
In this situation, say you are hit with a judgment for $250,000 in the case of one person involved in the accident. Your auto liability insurance will cover the first $100,000 and you are stuck with the rest. This doesn’t include the legal fees you will have to pay your attorney. In some cases, you might have to pay all of part of the legal fees the other party or parties incur.
So how do you protect yourself?
Umbrella insurance covers many things that auto, homeowners and renters policies do not. This type of insurance is inexpensive and versatile. Typically, you can buy umbrella insurance policies with $1 million limits for $200-$300 a year. So, for only a few hundred dollars, you can increase your per-person liability limits 10 times, 20 times, even 30 times and it applies to both you auto and homeowners or renters policies as well. An umbrella policy may seem unnecessary, but it really isn’t, especially for people with homes and other significant assets to protect. Umbrella insurance sits on top of your auto and homeowners or renters liability coverage, and is usually a cheaper option than increasing the limits on your auto insurance and homeowners insurance. Plus, you get the additional “personal injury” coverage that isn’t available in your auto and homeowners or renters policies.
Want to know more about Umbrella insurance in NH or ME? Feel free to reach out to us and we’d be happy to explain it further. Keslar is a full service independent agency located in NH and ME offering residential and commercial insurance. Www.keslarinsurance.com 603-273-0953.
