Liability Coverage in Charlotte, Harrisburg & Mountain Island Lake, NC
Ensure that You’re Insured.
If an accident happens, having the right amount of insurance can benefit you personally, financially, and legally. With Liability Coverage, you can be insured if you’re held responsible for a car accident by having any medical payments for injuries sustained to drivers, passengers, and pedestrians, as well as bills for property damage covered.
If you become legally liable as a result of a collision, liability also helps to pay for legal defense costs if you get sued.
Components of Liability
There are two main components to Auto Liability: Bodily Injury and Property Damage liability.
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Bodily Injury Liability helps pay for the costs associated with another person’s injuries, including medical expenses, loss of income and pain and suffering.
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Property Damage Liability takes care of any expenses that arise from damage caused by you to another driver’s vehicle or property.
If you’re involved in a serious auto accident, Liability Coverage can benefit you by providing critical protection against the loss of your home, savings, and income. Not only is having liability a good idea, but most states require that drivers have it in order to be legal on the road.
It’s important to have enough insurance to keep all of your assets protected and not all auto policies are the same. Contact a representative with Kevin Brewer & Associates, Inc. today for more information about what Liability Coverage can do for you.
Common Auto Liability Questions:
To be liable for something is to be responsible for it, which is why most states have liability laws that define when a driver is and is not responsible for an accident. These are sometimes called at-fault laws, and they make drivers who cause accidents responsible for paying for both their own damage and the damage they do to others.
If you are at fault for a wreck, then you can use auto liability insurance to pay for the damage you do to others. This coverage specifically applies to third-party losses, rather than property damage or injuries you yourself might sustain. Therefore, you usually must carry this coverage in conjunction with other auto insurance benefits.
When an auto accident is your fault, a third-party driver, pedestrian or other individual can file a claim against your own auto policy to pay for the losses they sustained. This coverage will provide them with the assistance they deserve without forcing you to pay out of pocket. That way, both parties can move on from the accident with minimal personal financial impacts.
Suppose, for example, that you rear-end another vehicle at a stoplight. Because the other vehicle was stopped and you were moving, then the accident is likely to be deemed your fault. The other driver would then retain the right to file against your auto liability insurance to cover their medical bills, vehicle damage and other related expenses.
The average liability policy offers two components of coverage:
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Bodily injury coverage: This benefit pays for third-party injury costs and certain related expenses. Most policies offer per person and per accident bodily injury limits. If more than one person is injured in a wreck, then the per person limit will apply to the costs of each injured party’s losses, while the per accident limit will apply to all injuries sustained by all parties.
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Property damage coverage: All third-party property damage (such as vehicle damage) will be subject to a single limit. Therefore, if more than one car were damaged in an accident, the single limit applies to the combined costs of each party’s damages.
Nearly all states require drivers to carry minimum limits of liability insurance. Those who fail to do so will face penalties if they are caught driving uninsured or underinsured.
North Carolina Motor Vehicle Law requires that Automobile Liability coverage be continuously maintained. The minimum coverage requirements are
$30,000 Bodily Injury for each person
$60,000 total Bodily Injury for all persons in an accident
$25,000 for Property Damage.
Motor Vehicle Law also requires Uninsured/ Underinsured Motorists coverage. Auto insurance policies with the minimum Bodily Injury and Property Damage limits are required to include Uninsured Motorists coverage. Policies with limits greater than the minimum must provide combined Uninsured/ Underinsured Motorists coverage. UIM coverage does not provide protection against property damage. The UIM coverage will pay a maximum of the difference between the other driver’s Liability limits and your UIM limits.
You are highly encouraged to carry higher limits than just the minimum mandatory coverage. The more you have, the more assistance you will have available if someone files a claim against your policy.
You should also enhance your plan with other benefits like collision, comprehensive and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. These benefits are designed to pay for your own vehicle losses in cases where you are responsible for paying for them.
Let Kevin Brewer & Associates, Inc. help you obtain auto liability insurance for your needs. We can help you choose a policy from within our network of trusted carriers, and we guarantee that we will get you the coverage that always provides you with the best value for your budget.
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