Underinsured Motorist Coverage
(UIM)
By Randy Sevenish, Motorcycle
Lawyer
As we said in
our July article, underinsured and uninsured motorists’ coverage are critically
important to bikers. In this article we will focus on UIM (underinsured
motorists) coverage. This is an
absolute must! Let me be
straight with you – “it is irresponsible
for any driver or biker not to have significant UIM coverage to protect
themselves but, most importantly, to protect their family.”
Underinsured
coverage (referred to as UIM coverage) is likewise, one of the most overlooked
and ignored types of coverage that bikers can have. And aside from what’s
called liability coverage, there is just no other more important coverage than
UIM coverage aside from UM or uninsured
motorists coverage.
UIM coverage
is exactly as the name suggests. It protects you and those people dear to you
if the underinsured wrong doer is at fault and he or she has insurance,
but just not enough insurance to fully compensate you.
In Indiana
insurance agents are actually required to offer both UM and UIM coverage’s to
bikers, but the biker can choose not to have it by waiving it. And it really
amazes me just how many bikers out there choose to waive this very important
type of coverage. Frankly, it can be the difference between protecting
themselves and those they love from financial ruin. So as with UM coverage
which is normally sold together with UIM coverage, I have noticed a continuing
and troubling trend of people choosing not to opt-in to this form of coverage.
Then when they’re seriously injured by an underinsured driver, they realize the
huge error that they made, but it’s too late. Don’t roll the dice on this. Make
sure you have plenty of UIM coverage to start with, to settle up with the
underinsured driver’s insurance company first then second to negotiate with
your own insurance company first then second to negotiate with your own
insurance company up to the UIM limits. But absolutely, do not ride without this coverage!
Under most
policies UIM coverage is sold together with UM coverage, and how much coverage
one should have will depend largely upon the risk that one is willing to take.
Keep in mind that UIM coverage provides compensation to the bikers themselves,
to the family members and to their passengers when injured by a person with
insurance, but just not ample insurance. So with the UM coverage, for example,
it only makes sense to purchase at least as much UIM coverage as you have in
liability coverage. So if you choose to have $50,000 in liability, then you
should have at least $50,000 in UIM at minimum. But most bikers choose to be
dramatically undercompensated, so what I
would like to recommend is a general rule of thumb of having at least $250,000
per person and $500,000 per accident. And they should also keep in mind
just as with UM coverage, should they suffer a significant injury only this
time at the hands of underinsured driver, that they need to know that their own
insurance company will not pay them anymore than the UIM limits they have
agreed to buy as listed on their declaration pages regardless of their injury
no matter how bad. And even then, their own insurance will more times than not,
not want to pay out the UIM limits. So, in the end, the wise biker will carry
plenty of UIM coverage before the crash happens and the get ready to fight
their own insurance company.
Buy as much
UM and UIM coverage as your budget and comfort level shall allow. Bad accidents happen to good
people. So, don’t be one of the tragic stories shared by people like me about
good people like you. Make sure you have ample UM and UIM coverage’s. It will
ease the burden of a significant injury and the resultant impact upon you and
your family. You can’t afford to go cheap here. Big Mistake! Ride straight.
