Umbrella coverage is an excellent safeguard to protect you when your coverage limits from other insurance policies are too low to adequately assist you. You might want to purchase umbrella insurance if you have a teen driver or aggressive pet or if you want help paying your legal fees and settlements for defamation or pain and suffering cases.
Legal Fees
Defending yourself in a lawsuit involves paying fees upon fees for your lawyer, the court, and processing. Even if you don’t win and have to pay a settlement, you will spend a great deal of money on your legal fees.
Umbrella insurance will cover your cost of defending yourself and help pay for any expenses you owe in the settlement if it comes to that.
Young Drivers
We all know that insuring teen drivers is expensive. Teens are at a higher risk of getting into an accident, which increases your car insurance premiums and increases the liability risk they represent if they were to cause extensive damage in an accident.
Car insurance coverage limits may not be high enough to take care of the expenses you will owe if your teen driver causes an accident. An umbrella insurance policy typically has a limit of $1 million or more, and this can make all the difference when you are found at fault and need to pay a settlement. The umbrella coverage will step in to cover your expenses after your car insurance policy has reached its coverage limits.
Pet Liability
Dog bites can be a big deal. If your dog injured another dog or a person, you can be held liable for damages, including expensive medical bills. You might even be charged for the psychological damage that comes with scars left behind from the encounter.
Suppose you have a dog that is typically considered to be an aggressive or dangerous breed. In that case, your homeowners insurance may not cover you for your pet’s liability. Umbrella insurance can provide the additional coverage you need to pay for these bills.
Defamation
When it comes to libel and slander, don’t expect your homeowners coverage to be enough to protect you. Liability with claims of defamation is not always covered by these forms of insurance, so it is important to carry additional coverage if you work in a field that could put you at risk, such as journalism.
Umbrella insurance can cover your liability if you need to pay a settlement for damages your words caused to another person.
Pain and Suffering
You may not think of it as a typical cause for concern when it comes to insuring your liability, but you should. The settlements for claims of pain and suffering can be in the range of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Umbrella insurance can cover you in these cases and help you pay the large settlements.
When you want to learn more about your liability coverage needs, think of All Things Insurance first. Our team is extremely capable and will match you with the coverage you need to protect your assets in the event of a claim. Contact us today to learn more.