Insurance drivers, or UIMs, may be one of the least understood types of car insurance, but they are becoming increasingly important in an era of rising and unstable driving. Price increases can sometimes lead to drivers unconsciously insured, but this important coverage gives the driver a way to recover the loss if they have an accident with a disabled driver who is not insured enough to cover damages.
What is uninsured driver coverage?
Insurance driver coverage can help cover medical and other expenses for you and your passengers if you are attacked by a driver with liability insurance that is not sufficient to cover your bill.
Liability insurance is required for all car owners in all states except New Hampshire. Disabled drivers are a legal requirement to ensure that individuals will grant insurance coverage to pay the damages they cause without resorting to litigation to recover their losses. Also, some drivers still choose to skirt legal requirements and not purchase liability coverage, so uninsured driver coverage exists and is mandatory in some states.
However, as accident rates and medical costs rise, state minimum liability restrictions often aren’t enough to cover costs after an accident. That’s where reports from insured drivers appear. It is to get the bill when the liability limit for a disabled driver is exhausted.
Types of drivers with underinsured insurance
Similar to liability and uninsured driver coverage, uninsured driver coverage falls into two categories: physical injury coverage and physical damage coverage.
- Underinsured Driver Body Injury (UIMBI): This coverage is paid for your medical and related expenses for you and your passengers if you have insufficient driver’s licence liability insurance. This is the most common type of uninsured drivers.
- Driver Property Damage (UIMPD) due to insurance shortages: This coverage will cause physical damage to the vehicle if the liability for a faulty driver’s license is insufficient. This type of UIM is not very common and may not be available in all states.
Both types of insurance are required in certain states, combined with uninsured driver coverage. In states that do not require UIM coverage, it may still be available, and in some states, insurers are required by law to provide it.
How does stacking work with uninsured driver coverage?
Similar to uninsured driver coverage, uninsured driver coverage allows policyholders to “stack” between vehicles and even across multiple policies. This essentially involves combining coverage of insurance drivers from multiple vehicles or policies in the same household to extend coverage limits. By stacking coverage, you can extend the maximum amount that an insured driver’s coverage can pay with a single claim.
Insured shortages and uninsured driver coverage?
Compensation for non-insured drivers has similar features. They allow drivers to hit inadequate liability operators with inadequate liability compensation to file first-party claims to recover the loss. But they play their role in slightly different situations.
Uninsured driver coverage deals with accidents caused by drivers without liability insurance, but uninsured driver coverage occurs in accidents in which a disabled driver is somewhat liable.
As insurance costs rise nationwide, both types of coverage are becoming more important. The higher the cost of car insurance, the more likely you will have to pay insurance as more drivers on the road. Drivers are also more likely to opt for affordable state minimum policies without adequate insurance coverage to address the full cost of the accident.
Do all states require coverage from insured drivers?
Not all states require drivers to purchase insurance coverage for drivers. Of the 21 states and Washington, D.C., drivers need to buy coverage for drivers that are lacking in insurance, only 11 people need to buy coverage for drivers that are underinsured.
- Connecticut
- Kansas
- main
- Minnesota
- Nebraska
- New Jersey
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Oregon*
- South Dakota
- Vermont*
*In Oregon and Vermont, uninsured driver coverage is combined as a single type of coverage.
In some other states, auto insurance companies must provide coverage for drivers who are insured on all car insurance policies, but drivers have the option to deny this coverage in writing. If you have robust health insurance, you may try to deny coverage to save money, but there may be good reasons to maintain UIM coverage in addition to health insurance. Unlike health insurance, UIMs may cover ongoing costs such as loss of wages, transportation costs, and pain and suffering.
