Have you ever heard someone say they have full coverage for auto insurance? Sounds like 
they have great coverage, right? Unfortunately, they do not. They have exactly what Florida law requires them to have and nothing more. What does Florida law require? Not much. Florida law only requires vehicle owners to have two types of insurance coverage. First, Florida requires $10,000.00 in Property Damage coverage. Second, Florida requires $10,000.00 in Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage.
Property Damage coverage does not pay for damage caused to your car. It only covers damage you cause to other people’s property. The most common property damage is damage to the other person’s car or motorcycle, but it also covers telephone poles, homes, and anything else that might be damaged from a car accident.
PIP coverage generally covers you and your passengers for medical expenses regardless if you are at fault for the accident. This type of coverage covers 80% of your medical expenses and 60% of your lost wages up until the amount of your policy limits ($10,000.00 minus your deductible if you have one) so long as you sought medical treatment within 14 days after an accident and were diagnosed with an “emergency medical condition.”
Now that you know what is covered by the minimum insurance coverage Florida requires, you can protect yourself (and your assets) by purchasing other available coverage. Unlike health insurance, car insurance policies are actually made up of several different types of coverage each with its own premium and benefits. Check out the detailed descriptions below regarding available auto insurance coverages to consider to better protect yourself.
Medical Payments Coverage: this pays for your reasonable medical expenses due to an auto accident, regardless of who is at fault.
Collision Coverage: this pays for the repair or replacement of your own vehicle after an accident
Comprehensive Coverage: this pays for the repair or replacement of your vehicle from incidents other than a collision including damage from hurricane, theft, or falling objects.
Bodily Injury Coverage: this coverage pays for injuries caused by you to other people. If you are at fault for an accident, bodily injury coverage helps protect you by paying for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. The amount of money paid for these items is limited to the amount of coverage you purchased. Since any damages that exceed these limits will have be paid out of your pocket, it is important to have sufficient coverage.
Uninsured Motorist/Underinsured Motorist (UM): this coverage is designed to pay for injuries, lost wages, and pain and suffering that you incur because of an accident caused by someone else. UM insurance is not required in Florida, but it is the most valuable kind of auto insurance you can purchase. UM insurance pays if the person who caused the accident has no bodily injury insurance or not enough bodily injury insurance. Since Florida does not require drivers to have bodily injury coverage, if you are injured in car accident through no fault of your own, you may find yourself owing medical expenses and have no one to pay them because the at fault driver did not have bodily injury coverage or the financial resources to pay. Not only does this coverage also apply to an accident caused by an uninsured driver, but it also covers hit and run accidents.
Want to know more about these coverages? Call me at the office at 727-210-800. I don’t sell auto insurance, but I deal with insurance companies every day because I help those injured in a car accident through no fault of their own. I can provide you valuable insight on the different types of insurance coverage and real-life examples of when each type of coverage applies.
Stay safe, Safety Harbor.
I focus my practice as a personal injury attorney in Clearwater, Palm Harbor, Largo, Dunedin and the Tampa Bay area.
For more information, visit our website at www.ClearwaterPersonalInjuryAttorney.net
or call (727) 210-8800