What is Uninsured Motorist (UM) Coverage?
In Atlanta, Georgia, the city’s traffic has become increasingly dangerous with continuous accidents occurring from morning commutes to work and continuing through the commute back home in the evening. With Atlanta’s current population of 5.6 million residents, it is safe to say that there will be individuals that do not have vehicle insurance coverage also known as uninsured motorist (UM).
Add-on UM insurance coverage allows for the injured victim of an auto accident to have their insurance pay for the injuries sustained as a result of the accident with an uninsured motorist. The presumption of only needing liability insurance can negatively affect you because it only provides you with a limited amount of protection. Though important, liability insurance only protects other drivers on the road from accidents that were caused by the insured. But UM coverage protects you from other drivers.
What does Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage do for me?
Add-on UM coverage protects you from individuals who a.) are inadequately insured b.) are uninsured or c.) fled the scene after the accident occurred (i.e., hit-and-run). If you are to ever get in an auto accident with an individual who is uninsured or involved in a hit-and-run, then your Add-om UM coverage will take place of the at-fault party’s liability coverage and cover your damages that were stated in your policy limits. Essentially, you’d be protecting yourself from other individual’s negligence.
When you are pursuing a personal injury claim against your UM coverage, you would be creating a first-party claim rather than a third-party claim. A first-party claim involves a filing against your own insurance provider versus a third-party claim that is filed against the other party’s insurance.
In such scenarios where the at-fault party does not have insurance, the main source of compensation for the damages obtained will be the UM coverage that the affected party obtained from their insurance provider.
How do I determine the amount of Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage I should get?
You can purchase Add-on UM coverage through your current vehicle insurance carrier. UM insurance works similarly to how liability coverage functions. For example, if your personal injury provides coverage of up to $100,000, then you may want to purchase your UM coverage for $100,000.
Additionally, Add-on UM coverage also protects you in the case that the other party involved has a lower amount of limits on their vehicle insurance. Imagine that an individual is hurt from an auto accident and they have Add-on UM coverage of $100,000 with ABC Insurance. The driver who caused the accident, the at-fault party, has a liability policy limit of $50,000 with XYZ Insurance. XYZ Insurance will only pay $50,000 in damages and the rest of the damages would be covered by ABC Insurance through your Add-on UM coverage.
It is important to be able to properly determine the amount of Add-on UM coverage for various scenarios that can occur when commuting in Atlanta or anywhere. If you have been injured in an auto or trucking accident, call your Georgia Buddy at Holston & Huntley at (404) 620-3337. Call us today to schedule your FREE consultation. We can help and you don’t pay unless we recover money for you!
