by MaxHerr » Wed Aug 06, 2014 02:45 am
The following article was written by Jay Blickstein at Insurance Networking News, August 6, 2014. http://www.insurancenetworking.com/news/claims/1-in-8-motorists-uninsured-says-irc-report-34730-1.html?utm_campaign=daily-aug%205%202014&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&ET=insurancenetworking%3Ae2901018%3A80762a%3A&st=email
According to a report from the Insurance Research Council, 1 in 8 motorists, or 12.6 percent, do not carry auto insurance. This represents a downtick from 2003, when 14.9 percent of drivers were uninsured. About 29.7 million motorists in the U.S. are driving uninsured, a slight dip from 29.9 million in 2009, says the IRC report. Payments for uninsured claims total $2.6 billion, a number that is up by 75 percent over the last 10 years. (Data is from 2012, the last year for which information is available.)
The estimated percent of uninsured motorists is highest in Oklahoma (26 percent) and Florida (24 percent), with the total number of drivers without insurance highest in California (4.1 million) and Florida (3.2 million).
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The 75% increase in the value of uninsured claims paid is an eye-opener. Although the number of uninsured drivers has gone down slightly, the amount of damage they do to persons and their property has greatly increased. You don't want to be on the receiving end of such a collision.
With more than 12.5% of all drivers currently uninsured, the wise driver will pay the cost to carry Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury and Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (or Collision Waiver) coverages, both of which also provide excess coverage when an at fault driver does not have sufficient coverage to pay all of a third-party's claim (the "U" also stands for "underinsured" coverage). A significant percentage of insured drivers carry only the minimum liability limits required in their state.
If you never have occasion to file a UMBI/UMPD claim in your driving career, consider that life was better than the small amount of premium that you paid for the peace of mind that the protection offers.
It's unfortunate that we who are responsible drivers need this added protection, but there is no way to enforce mandatory motor vehicle insurance laws in a way that achieves 100% compliance other than if the state provides it for all drivers. And there are no states which currently do this or which are in a financial position to do so.
According to a report from the Insurance Research Council, 1 in 8 motorists, or 12.6 percent, do not carry auto insurance. This represents a downtick from 2003, when 14.9 percent of drivers were uninsured. About 29.7 million motorists in the U.S. are driving uninsured, a slight dip from 29.9 million in 2009, says the IRC report. Payments for uninsured claims total $2.6 billion, a number that is up by 75 percent over the last 10 years. (Data is from 2012, the last year for which information is available.)
The estimated percent of uninsured motorists is highest in Oklahoma (26 percent) and Florida (24 percent), with the total number of drivers without insurance highest in California (4.1 million) and Florida (3.2 million).
-----------------------------------------------------
The 75% increase in the value of uninsured claims paid is an eye-opener. Although the number of uninsured drivers has gone down slightly, the amount of damage they do to persons and their property has greatly increased. You don't want to be on the receiving end of such a collision.
With more than 12.5% of all drivers currently uninsured, the wise driver will pay the cost to carry Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury and Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (or Collision Waiver) coverages, both of which also provide excess coverage when an at fault driver does not have sufficient coverage to pay all of a third-party's claim (the "U" also stands for "underinsured" coverage). A significant percentage of insured drivers carry only the minimum liability limits required in their state.
If you never have occasion to file a UMBI/UMPD claim in your driving career, consider that life was better than the small amount of premium that you paid for the peace of mind that the protection offers.
It's unfortunate that we who are responsible drivers need this added protection, but there is no way to enforce mandatory motor vehicle insurance laws in a way that achieves 100% compliance other than if the state provides it for all drivers. And there are no states which currently do this or which are in a financial position to do so.
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