Do you really need underinsured motorist coverage on your auto policy? Yes, and here’s why…

Many of you probably don’t know anything about underinsured motorist coverage.  It kicks in when 1) you’ve been in an auto accident; 2) the other driver was at fault; 3) you were injured; and 4) the other driver’s auto policy doesn’t cover the total of your medical bills and pain and suffering for the injuries you sustained in the car wreck.

Why am I, an attorney, preaching about auto insurance?  Here’s why…

We recently finalized a case for a client that had been in a horrible car accident.  He was the passenger in a friend’s vehicle when his friend abruptly cut in front of another driver to make a left turn.  Our client tragically lost his right arm in the collision, and there wasn’t a thing he could have done about it.

His friend had a mere $50,000 in collision coverage.  I don’t know if you’ve priced prosthetics lately, but this doesn’t put a dent in the bills.  We hired an expert to show the other driver was speeding, and fortunately the other driver had a $100,000 policy.  While this was good news, it still doesn’t do much for the loss of an arm.

This brings me to why YOU NEED UNDERINSURED MOTORIST COVERAGE.  If my client had underinsured motorist coverage, then it would have helped pay for his medical bills and future care. To add insult to injury, he didn’t have coverage.

I see this happen all the time, and it’s because of insurance companies like SafeAuto that promise to “keep you legal for less.”  In Missouri, that means only $25,000 in collision coverage.  If you ask me, this is just passing the cost of insurance on to the rest of us.  But until legislation is passed to raise minimum state limits, it is in your best interest to have underinsured coverage.