FEATURE — With over 220 million licensed drivers on American roadways, accidents happen every minute.
As a personal injury attorney in St. George, one of the most common questions Kevin Swenson is asked is “How much automobile insurance do I need?”
“Unfortunately most of my clients ask me that too late,” Swenson said.
In fact, an average of 6 million automobile accidents occur every year in the United States, resulting in 3 million occupants suffering some form of personal injury. That’s a lot of broken bones and bumpers, and to add insult to injury, many people have inadequate coverage.
What happens if the other driver is uninsured or underinsured?
For residents of Utah, the minimum limit requirement is $25,000 per occupant of a vehicle that has been hit or $65,000 for the whole crash. But exactly what does that mean for you? It means if you have three other people in your car during an accident, you all have to split the $65,000 four ways.
Unfortunately, most often that simply isn’t enough to cover the cost of your medical bills and potential wage loss, not to mention any compensation for pain and suffering.
“In order to take care of that, you need to make sure you insure yourself,” Swenson said, adding that Swenson & Shelley advises that everyone should have good uninsured motorist and also underinsured motorist insurance coverage.
Uninsured motorist insurance is needed is somebody hits you with no insurance coverage of their own, and underinsured motorist coverage protects you if the other driver has insurance but not enough to cover you.
Swenson recommends that anyone who is unsure if they have enough coverage to protect themself or their families should talk to their insurance agent immediately and change their policy if necessary.
You can find out more information about what automobile coverage you need and how the injury attorneys of Swenson & Shelley can advise you on their website.
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