Are you, or someone close to you, involved in a car crash this year? It is not something anyone wants to think about. Car and motorcycle accidents are the leading cause of death and accidental disability. Each year, there are over 6 million injuries and 40,000 deaths. Many of these fatalities are due to careless drivers who cause accidents and then run from the scene. Some leave because they don’t have insurance, or because they fear for their safety; others leave because of the effects of drugs and alcohol. Iowans are unaware that only one type insurance policy can cover you in the event that you or a family member is hit by a hit-and-run driver. Although the insurance companies may not have told you this, I will, even though I don’t sell insurance. Uninsured motorist coverage covers you and your family in the event of a hit-and-run driver. Uninsured motorist coverage covers medical bills, lost wages, injury, and permanent disability resulting from a hit-and-run accident.
Are you aware of how much coverage you need for uninsured motorists to protect your family and you from hit-and-run drivers? I have found that Iowans don’t know how much uninsured motorist coverage they have unless they check their policies. Your insurance company will cover your damages up until the limit of your coverage if you have sufficient UM-uninsured motorist coverage.
Keep in mind, however, that when you purchase more coverage, you also get more UIM-underinsured driver coverage. This means that if you are struck by a driver with inadequate insurance (which is about 80% according to our experience), or if your liability coverage covers you for an accident, then you have additional coverage to protect yourself and your family.
There is a limit to the amount you can claim for damages. This limit is also called a policy limit. If the policy limit for an accident victim is $40,000 but you have medical bills greater than that, your insurance policy will not cover you. This is why you should make sure you have coverage for underinsured motorists to protect you and your family.
Minimum insurance coverage in Iowa: $20,000/$40,000 This is the minimum insurance coverage you need to insure your motorcycle or vehicle. If your motorcycle or car insurance policy says $20,000/$40,000, $300,000/$500,000 this means that you have the maximum coverage available for each person injured. If you have only $20,000/$40,000 coverage each person injured in a hit-and-run accident would be covered only up to $20,000 Only $40,000. This is the total coverage for hit and run accidents. The total coverage for a hit-and-run accident would only be $40,000. If four people are injured in an accident caused by a hit-and run driver, the maximum amount each person would receive would be $20,000 but the five other people would need to share the total insurance coverage which would be $40,000.
We recently conducted a survey of the top insurance companies in Iowa and found that the difference between $20,000 and $500,000 coverage for Iowa drivers ranges from $.15 to $.72 per hour. Want to find out which insurance company had the lowest rates for car insurance?