In the State of Florida there are various types of insurance involved in automobile accidents such as:
1. Bodily Injury Insurance (BI)
2. Property Damage Insurance (PD)
3. Personal Injury Protection Insurance (PIP)
4. Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Insurance (UM/UIM)
5. Umbrella Insurance
In our state, the only insurance required by law to be carried by all owners of vehicles are property damage insurance (PD) and personal injury protection insurance (PIP). Property damage coverage (PD) is insurance to pay for the damages sustained to the other person’s automobile in a crash. Personal injury protection (PIP) is insurance that will pay for your own medical bills, usually up to $10,000, for your own injuries in a crash, even if you are at fault. PIP insurance also pays for 60% of your lost wages. This insurance is called no-fault coverage.
An owner of a vehicle is NOT required to have Bodily injury insurance. In order to collect money for your injuries, it is vital that the car owner and/or driver that caused your injuries has bodily injury insurance. If the owner and/or driver did not have BI insurance, you will likely not be able to collect any money for your injuries unless you had your own Uninsured Motorist Insurance (UM). For example, suppose Ms. Jane Innocent is driving her vehicle on the highway and Mr. Tom Guilty is speeding and hits Ms. Innocent in the rear. Ms. Innocent is badly injured and is rushed to the hospital and has surgery for multiple leg fractures. The attorney for Ms. Innocent immediately reaches out to Mr. Guilty's insurance carrier and it turns out he only carries the minimum insurance. The minimum insurance as explained above is only property damage ( to pay for Ms. Innocents repair to her car) and personal injury protection (to pay for Mr. Guilty's own medical bills). Mr. Guilty did NOT pay for and carry Bodily Injury Insurance (BI). Therefore, there is no insurance to pay for Ms. Innocents injuries. Unless Mr. Guilty is a very wealthy person with numerous properties and assets, it will be very difficult, if not impossible, to collect any money from Mr. Guilty personally. The State of Florida has many protections for wealthy people who owe money. We. at Kreutzer Law Offices will retain an investigator to determine what, if any, assets the at fault party has depending on the facts and circumstances. Therefore, BI insurance is so important. Ms. Innocent will have her own personal injury protection (PIP) pay for 80% of her own medical bills and 60% of her lost wages up to her limit of $10,000. Without the at-fault party having BI insurance, Ms. Innocent will have to pay for the rest of her medical bills on her own and also Ms. Innocent will not receive any money for her pain and suffering, permanent injuries and her change in lifestyle due to her injuries. This is because the at fault party, Mr. Guilty, did not have BI insurance.
The only way for Ms. Innocent to receive any money for the remainder of her bills and for her pain and suffering is if she paid for and carried Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage (UM/UIM). If Ms. Innocent had this coverage, her attorneys would make a claim against her own insurance company, and if the claim could not be resolved, a lawsuit would be filed. Therefore, in the State of Florida, it is very important to pay for and carry this additional coverage of UM/UIM.
Another type of insurance is Umbrella insurance. Umbrella insurance is an excess policy which will cover a person's home, automobiles, jewelry and all sorts of other items. This is another avenue your Miami Personal Injury Attorneys and Ft. Lauderdale Personal Injury Attorneys will analyze and look into to get the injured party the maximum recovery.
YOUR MIAMI PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEYS AND FT. LAUDERDALE PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEYS ARE AVAILABLE 24 HOURS A DAY AND 7 DAYS A WEEK TO ASSIST YOU IF YOU ARE INJURED. DO NOT DELAY AND REACH OUT TO US RIGHT AWAY.
