Any time you drive or ride in a vehicle, you are at risk of being involved in an accident. In many cases, these accidents will result in significant expenses related to property damage and physical injuries. When an accident occurs and leads to loss, victims typically rely on insurance to pay their expenses. However, if an uninsured or underinsured driver caused your accident, the situation is automatically more complicated.
Liability Insurance Basics
Liability insurance policies apply when the policyholder is responsible for a car accident. For example, if you cause a car accident, your bodily injury liability and property damage liability policies will cover related losses for victims. However, if someone else was responsible for the accident, you will expect that individual’s liability policy to pay your related expenses. Unfortunately, if the individual who caused the accident did not have an adequate insurance policy, you may be left without the benefits you need.
To protect yourself in the event of an accident caused by an uninsured or underinsured driver, you need UI and UIM coverage. This type of insurance will pay out benefits when you are involved in a crash caused by someone who doesn’t have adequate insurance coverage.
Are UI and UIM Insurance Required?
Most states, including Indiana, require drivers to purchase a minimum amount of bodily injury liability and property damage liability insurance. However, at the time of publication, Indiana does not require drivers to carry UI and UIM. To eliminate this type of coverage, you must decline it at the time your policy is purchased.
Even though Indiana law does not require you to purchase UI and UIM coverage, it is still in your best interest to do so. Without this type of insurance, a single accident could leave you facing severe financial problems.
Risks of Foregoing UI and UIM Coverage
The state of Indiana ranks in the top ten for uninsured drivers, with as many as 17 percent of drivers failing to carry liability insurance in 2015. This percentage does not include drivers who have inadequate coverage. Because the lack of proper insurance is so high in this state, it is even more important for drivers to purchase UI and UIM insurance to protect themselves from loss.
The current state of the economy makes operating without UI and UIM coverage even more dangerous. In recent months, many insurance companies have offered lower premiums and/or deferred billing options to help clients who were not able to make their usual payments due to economic hardship. However, when these options expire, even more people may be tempted to drive without the proper amount of coverage.
Protecting Yourself with UI and UIM Coverage
If you are complying with current legal requirements, you have likely already purchased liability coverage to protect yourself in the event of an accident you have caused. To protect yourself fully, however, you need UI and UIM coverage as well.
It is possible to purchase UI and UIM coverage with low limits at a lower price. However, even though these policies may cost less, they are not recommended. The minimum amount of coverage available is rarely enough to provide the right protection. To ensure that you have the protection you need, work with an independent insurance agent to explore policy options. An independent insurance agent will not only be able to offer you different types of coverage, but also coverage from different insurance providers.
If you need UI and UIM coverage, please contact the team at Luxor Insurance today.
