Do you have Bodily Injury(BI) coverage? Better question, do you know EXACTLY what that is? While auto insurance isn’t your normal topic of dinner conversation, it’s still a something that should be discussed as your needs change.
Mistakenly, people assume that having the Florida state minimum, which is Property Damage (PD) and Personal Injury Protection (PIP), is enough coverage. Did you know that the Florida State Minimum offers you ZERO coverage if you are at fault in an accident to cover the other party’s injuries?
If you hurt someone in an accident you cause, this is where Bodily Injury comes into play. It covers the damages that you are legally responsible for and provides a legal defense if someone sues you for the damages you’ve caused.
Fun fact: Bodily Injury covers per person/per accident.
How much Bodily Injury is enough?
When choosing your limits, consider all of your assets, including your home and your future earnings. For example, in Florida, if the damages exceed your coverage you primary home cannot be compromised, but everything else can.
Here’s an example of how BI works:
- Sarah crashes into Jim and causes him Bodily Injury in the amount of: $50,000.
- Sarah has an auto policy that has Bodily Injury limits of 10,000 per person / 20,000 per accident.
- Sarah’s policy covers 10,000 of Jim’s medical bills.
- Who is responsible for paying the remaining $40,000 of Jim’s bills? Sarah.
- Now all of your assets are liable.
But what if someone with no insurance hits you? Or worse, your policy is like Sarah’s? Stay tuned for Part 2 of this series of blogs!
