Pennsylvania Car Insurance: Underinsured Motorist Coverage
Required minimum coverage under Pennsylvania law:
- Not required
Our law firm’s recommended minimum coverage:
- $100,000 per person
- $300,000 per occurrence
While there are many uninsured drivers on the road, there are also many who are insured, but do not carry a sufficient amount of bodily injury liability insurance to fully pay the victims of accidents caused by their negligence.
Underinsured Motorist coverage on your car insurance policy makes up the difference between the amount of coverage an at-fault driver has on his or her insurance policy and what you are entitled to collect for injuries caused in an accident. The at-fault driver has insurance, but just doesn’t have high enough coverage amounts.
Underinsured Motorist Coverage can be used whether you are a driver, passenger, pedestrian, or even the victim of a hit-and-run accident – provided that the at-fault driver is later identified. If the accident was not your fault and you discover that the responsible driver has insufficient insurance coverage – i.e. was underinsured – who will pay for your medical bills? Who will compensate you for your pain and suffering? With Underinsured Motorist coverage, your own insurance company steps in to take the place of the underinsured driver so that you can receive all the money you deserve for your injuries.
You are not required to purchase Underinsured Motorist coverage in Pennsylvania. Again, while you might save a few dollars on your insurance premium, not having the coverage when you need it could literally cost you thousands of dollars that otherwise would have been available for you to collect.
EXAMPLE:
You elect to carry Underinsured Motorist coverage at our recommended levels on your car insurance policy.
You are seriously injured in a car accident and the value of your case exceeds $200,000. However, the driver who caused the accident only has auto insurance with liability limits of $15,000. This driver is "underinsured".
Had you not chosen Underinsured motorist coverage on your own car insurance policy, you would only be able to collect $15,000 from the at-fault driver’s liability coverage. In this case, you would have lost $100,000 by not choosing underinsured coverage for you vehicles and not stacking these coverages. That is money out of your pocket that you may need – especially if you are off work or require extensive treatment
If you insure more than one vehicle, ask your insurance company representative about stacking your benefits to get the most coverage for your money.
