It’s an unfortunate fact that many people who cause car accidents in Georgia don’t have enough insurance to pay your medical bills and time you’ve missed from work and compensate you for the pain and aggravation that the accident and your injuries have caused you. If you have uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage on your Georgia car insurance policy, you may have additional insurance that can help compensate you for your accident. Our car accident lawyers explain Georgia’s insurance laws below:
What Is Georgia Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage?
Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage protects you when you get into an accident with someone who doesn’t have insurance or doesn’t have enough insurance to cover your injuries. Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage is commonly called UM/UIM coverage.
Uninsured Motorist Coverage protects you against drivers who don’t have insurance. It’s also called UM coverage. For example, you are driving through an intersection when another driver runs a stop sign and t-bones your car. Your car is totaled and you are hurt and have to be taken to the emergency room. Unfortunately, the other driver doesn’t have insurance. If you have Uninsured Motorist Coverage, your insurance company will pay you for the property damage to your car and compensate you for your injuries.
Underinsured Motorist Coverage protects you against drivers who don’t have enough insurance. It’s also called UIM coverage. Let’s take the same situation as above. You have damages of $50,000 but the other driver only has $25,000 of insurance. This leaves you $25,000 short. Underinsured Motorist Coverage makes up the $25,000 difference.
How Much Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage Do I Have?
The declarations page of your car insurance policy contains this information. It should typically say something like “UM/UIM Limits of $25,000 per person/$50,000 per occurrence.” Your insurance agent or insurance company should be able to give you this information. If you have the declarations page of your insurance policy handy, we’ll be happy to explain it to you.
Your Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage will only pay up to your policy limits. For instance, you have UM/UIM coverage of $50,000 per person/$100,000 per occurrence. This means the most your insurance company will pay in UM/UIM benefits to one person involved in the accident is $50,000 and the most it will pay to all people involved in the accident is $100,000. For another example, you have UM/UIM coverage of $100,000 per person/$300,000 per occurrence. The most your insurance company will pay in UM/UIM benefits to one person involved in the accident is $100,000 and the most it will pay to all people involved in the accident is $300,000.
Are There Different Types Of Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage In Georgia?
In Georgia, there are two different types of UM/UIM policies. The first is usually called an “add-on” or “added” policy and the second is usually called a “reducing” or “difference in limits” policy.
What Is “Add-On” Or “Excess” Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage In Georgia?
“Add-on” or “excess” UM/UIM coverage is added to the insurance of the driver who caused the wreck.
For instance, if the at-fault driver has $25,000 in insurance and you have “add-on” UM/UIM coverage of $100,000, you have a total of $125,000 of insurance available.
Here’s another example: the at-fault driver has $50,000 in insurance. You have $50,000 of “add-on” UM/UIM coverage. You have a total of $100,000 of insurance available.
What Is “Reducing” Or “Difference In Limits” Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage In Georgia?
If you have “reducing” or “difference in limits” uninsured motorist coverage, the insurance of the driver who caused the wreck is subtracted from your UM/UIM coverage.
Here’s an example: the at-fault driver has $25,000 in insurance. You have “reducing” UM/UIM coverage of $100,000. You have $75,000 in UM/UIM coverage available to you because $100,000 – $25,000 = $75,000. This means the maximum amount of insurance available to you is $100,000: the at-fault driver’s $25,000 in insurance and your $75,000 in UM/UIM insurance.
Here’s another example: the at-fault driver has $50,000 in insurance. You have “reducing” UM/UIM coverage of $300,000. You have $250,000 in UM/UIM coverage available to you because $300,000 – $50,000 = $250,000. This means the maximum amount of insurance available to you is $300,000: the at-fault driver’s $50,000 in insurance and your $250,000 in UM/UIM insurance.
Which Type Of Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage Does My Insurance Policy Have?
The declarations page of your car insurance policy should say whether you have “add-on” or “reducing” coverage. Your insurance agent or insurance company should be able to give you this information. If you have the declarations page of your insurance policy handy, we’ll be happy to explain it to you.