Florida Insurance Options Explained
Bodily Injury Liability, or BI coverage, protects you when you are the at-fault party in a collision. If an accident victim sues you, BI coverage can be used to pay for legal defense and to cover the victims’ claims. It’s not mandatory in Florida, but well worth looking into. BI policies are listed with numbers like 10/20, which means the policy covers $10,000 per accident victim, with a maximum amount of $20,000 coverage for the whole accident. For example, if four people were injured in the accident, each of them would not receive $10,000, but rather a portion of the maximum coverage of $20,000.
Property Damage Coverage (aka PD coverage) protects you if your car damages someone else’s property. For example, if your teenager takes down the neighbor’s fence with your car, or if you hit someone’s car and smash the contents of his or her trunk. In addition to covering the cost of repairs or replacements, the PD coverage can be used to give you legal defense if you are sued.
Uninsured Motorist Coverage is something you already have unless you actively opted out of it. This covers you and your family members who live in your household if they are injured by an uninsured driver, either as passengers in a vehicle or as pedestrians. According to the Insurance Research Council’s data from 2009, 24 percent of Florida motorists are uninsured.
Collision Coverage pays for your car if it is damaged in an accident with another vehicle. This covers the cost of repairing or replacing your vehicle, minus the deductible.
Comprehensive Insurance pays for damage to your car from almost anything but a collision: flood, fire, animals, or thieves.
Of course, there are many types of insurance available, and you have to choose the one that will best protect your assets for a price you are able to pay. But few people realize how much insurance they need – until they need it. If that’s you, having a knowledgeable advocate on your side through this process may help you get the most possible compensation and protect you from further financial injury.
If you have a case where you feel that you, a family member or friend, have been harmed due to the negligence of another driver, please call Chris Ligori & Associates at (813) 223-2929 or call us on one of our local numbers for a for a free consultation.
