While you may believe you have ample car insurance, the cars on the road around you may not. According to the Insurance Research Council (IRC), about 14 percent of drivers nationwide (roughly one in seven) are uninsured. That means that of the nearly 5.5 million car accidents in 2009, nearly 770,000 involved an uninsured driver. While this number usually decreases as unemployment rates improve, it’s a prudent idea to make sure your insurance is sufficient for covering an accident with an uninsured driver.
According to North Carolina attorney Dre Fleury with the law firm Crumley Roberts, the minimum required coverage is usually not enough.
"You can't always avoid an auto accident, but you can protect yourself financially, and you may find that for just a few extra dollars per month you could quadruple your coverage," advises Fleury. Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all solution for ensuring enough coverage. Factors such as age, driving record, where you live, family size and much more can affect your insurance costs and coverage needs.
"Policies can be very detailed and highly personalized, but the key areas you want to review are liability and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage," says Fleury. "Medical payments coverage is also a great thing to have in your policy.
"It's not just uninsured or underinsured drivers who pose a risk," adds Fleury. "If you're at fault in an accident, not having enough liability coverage could wipe you out financially, and the person you injure can even come after your home, assets and more."
To help balance out the increased costs of liability insurance, Fleury suggests decreasing your collision and comprehensive insurance if you have an older car with no loan.
Source: Crumley Roberts, LLP
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