Insuranceoncars

Why This Lawyer Says You Should Buy Car Insurance From An Independent Broker

I don’t sell car insurance, but as a lawyer practicing in the field of personal injury I frequently see people suffer because they have the wrong insurance coverage. Often, this happens because they purchased directly from an insurance company instead of an independent broker.

Many of my clients who have been seriously hurt in a car accident were struck by someone who had no insurance or only the minimum liability insurance coverage, which is 25,000 in New York and much less in many other states. Unfortunately, many of my clients were sold insurance policies with liability limits of 100,000 or 300,000, but were not sold matching uninsured and underinsured coverage.

Just this week, yet another new client had this problem. My client was a pedestrian crossing the street when she was struck by a car which fled the scene. The driver was caught shortly after leaving the accident, but the owner of the car only has the New York State minimum liability insurance of 25,000 and my client has serious injuries consisting of many broken bones including a fractured arm, leg and skull.

My client owns a car with liability insurance limits of 300,000, but she purchased the insurance from GEICO whose salesperson didn’t sell her underinsured coverage. GEICO does not use independent insurance brokers, but sells insurance directly to consumers through in-house sales agents.

For a small fee, my client could have purchased underinsured coverage of 300,000 which would have allowed her to recover 300,000 for her injuries instead of 25,000. Ironically, she did not need the 300,000 liability coverage to protect her assets. However, since you cannot buy underinsured coverage higher than your liability coverage, I would have advised her to purchase 300,000 liability coverage for the sole purpose of being able to purchase 300,000 underinsured coverage.

I have had many clients in this situation who lost their jobs because of serious injuries and incurred substantial debt. If they had matching underinsured coverage, the additional money available to pay their claim would would be a big help to pay their bills and get their life back together.

Underinsured motorist coverage will pay you money from your own automobile insurance policy if you have been hurt in a car accident by someone who was negligent for causing your injury and who had less liability insurance coverage than you did. Uninsured motorist coverage will pay you when the other car did not have any insurance coverage or the identity of the other car is unknown.

Underinsured and uninsured coverage is inexpensive and usually available in limits that match your liability insurance coverage. It is not available in amounts greater than your liability insurance coverage.

Underinsured and uninsured coverage is so important that a couple of states now require coverage limits matching your liability insurance limits, unless you decline the coverage in writing. Several years ago, I suggested to several New York State senators that they enact a similar law in New York.

I have also seen many clients who were not sold the maximum medical payments insurance, which costs me only 2.01 per month on my car insurance policy. This is particularly important for people who do not have a good health insurance policy. It is also beneficial for passengers who do not have health insurance.

Why should you buy car insurance through an independent insurance broker? The courts have defined the reason. There have been several “malpractice” lawsuits against insurance companies for failure to offer underinsured and uninsured motorists coverage limits matching the liability limits. However, when the insurance company sells directly to consumers, these cases have gone in favor of the insurance companies. The courts found that when a consumer buys insurance directly from an insurance company, rather than an insurance broker, the consumer is only buying insurance and is not paying for advice.

When you buy auto insurance from an independent insurance broker who represents several different insurance companies, you get the advantage of an insurance professional who can evaluate your needs and advise you accordingly. Additionally, only an independent insurance broker can provide you with a choice of insurance companies and premiums, so you get the best coverage at the lowest price.

Whether you buy your car insurance directly from an insurance company or through an independent insurance broker, always make sure that you purchase matching uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage and the maximum medical payment benefits.

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Cheap Car Insurance For Teens How To Keep The Rates Down

The teenager shopping for car insurance is at a decided disadvantage. Car insurance rates are based on age and driving experience as well as driving record. The best way for teenage drivers to work their way into better rates is stay on their parents policy in order to gain driving experience and a driving record. There is a good chance that after three years and a clean driving record that a preferred policy from the parents insurance company can then be issued on the teen drivers that want to have their own car and pay for their own insurance. There are numerous discounts for the young driver today. Drivers training education is the most common discount. The drivers training course normally consist of 30 hours of driving with an authorized instructor along with 6 hours of classroom work. Some companies give discounts for good students that carry a 3.0 grade point average in high school or college. There is also a resident student discount available by some insurance companies. The student has to live over 100 miles away from home to receive this discount.

Age Rating Tiers Most insurance companies have age rating tiers on young drivers. The ages from 16 to 21 is one tier and the rates are the highest in this time period. The next age tier begins at age 21 and ends at age 25. The rates drop significantly at age 21 and again at age 25.

Vehicles Make a Difference The younger the driver the higher the rate. The rates are very high for young drivers on newer vehicles that require collision and comprehensive coverage. Older vehicles that only require liability coverage as a minimum state requirement is one way to cut costs for the teen driver. Utility vehicles like pick-up trucks receive a small discount and the teen driver can take advantage of that discount also. The teen driver needs to stay away from high performance vehicles and sports cars because the rates will be very high and these cars may not qualify for standard car insurance.

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Auto insurance in general, which includes car insurance is an insurance consumers can purchase for cars, trucks, and other vehicles. Its mainly meant to provide protection against losses incurred as a result of car accidents and also thefts of vehicle. It also includes losses arising due to natural calamities. To have your car insured is mandatory by law. When you insure you get a “policy” which is based on a variety of factors including the type of car you drive, as well as what kind of insurance you want, as these policies are actually a package of different types of insurance coverage. They can be classified as:

Liability – This coverage pays for accidental physical injury of the body and damage to others property. Injury damages include medical expenses, pain or suffering and lost wages. Property damage includes damages to the automobile. This coverage also pays for defense and court costs. State laws fix how much liability coverage you must purchase, but you can also get more coverage if you wish.

Collision – This insurance pays for damages to your vehicle caused by collision with another vehicle or object.

Comprehensive – This coverage pays for losses or damages to the insured vehicle that doesn’t occur in an auto accident. The possible types of damages comprehensive insurance covers include loss caused by fire, wind, hail, flood, vandalism or theft.

Medical Coverage – Pays medical expenses regardless of whose fault it was as long as the expenses are caused by an auto accident.

PIP – Personal Injury Protection (PIP) – This coverage pays medical expenses for the insured driver, regardless of whose fault it was, for treatment due to injuries arising in an auto accident.

Uninsured Motorist – Pays for your car’s damages when an auto accident is caused by another driver who doesn’t have liability insurance.

Underinsured Motorist Pays for your car’s damages when an auto accident is caused by someone who has insufficient liability insurance to settle all your claims.

Rental Reimbursement – This type of insurance will pay for a rental car if your rented car is damaged due to an auto accident. Often this coverage has a daily allowance to be paid for at the time of renting a car.

Certain insurance policies club together a number of these types of coverage. Depending on the laws that exist in your state you have to choose the insurance you want for your car. Even though the state may not require extensive insurance, extra coverage may be worth the expense as it is possible that you may be straddled with thousands of pounds because of an auto accident.

Tags: Auto Accident, Car Accidents, Car Insurance, Comprehensive Insurance, Fire Wind, Insurance Consumers, Insurance Coverage, Liability Coverage, Liability Insurance, Medical Coverage, Medical Expenses, Natural Calamities, Other Vehicles, Personal Injury Protection, Pip, Second Wife, State Laws, Types Of Insurance, Uninsured Motorist, Vandalism