NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION-BETTER ACCIDENT PROTECTION
From: New York attorney Gary E. Rosenberg (personal injury and accident attorney and lawyer; serving Brooklyn Queens Bronx1; Bronx accident attorney)
To: Every car, truck, bus, or motorcycle owner out there. Go now and pull out a copy of your vehicle's insurance policy. If you have more than New York State's minimum liability insurance coverage limits of $25,000/$50,000/$10,000 - New York's minimum coverage limit means that you would have $25,000 per person injured, $50,000 per accident, and $10,000 for property damage - check your underinsured motorist or Supplementary Uninsured Motorist ("SUM") coverage. If you do not have higher than the $25,000 minimum in SUM coverage, call your insurance broker or insurance company and increase your SUM limits to the maximum allowable amount. This is inexpensive coverage and if you don't believe me when I tell you that it's inexpensive, just ask your broker or insurance company how little it will raise your insurance premium.
This is your best protection from the drivers of the world who may hurt or injure you in an accident and have only the $25,000 minimum insurance available. Worse yet, they may be operating a car from another state with even lower-than-New-York-insurance coverage limits or, still worse, their car may be uninsured; maybe because it's stolen, or the owner didn't pay the insurance bill, or whatever.
I am tired of telling clients who have suffered a serious injury that the most money they can get is $25,000, but that for a small additional insurance premium they could have protected themselves and had additional insurance coverage available through their own, underinsured or SUM, insurance coverage. It is my hope that in the year 2010 I won't have to have this conversation with any of my new clients.
And just as an afterthought, if you're driving around with New York's minimum insurance limits of $25,000/$50,000/$10,000 you do not have enough insurance and you should go buy more insurance coverage. That way if someone sues you for an injury sustained in an accident - be it with a car, bus, truck or motorcycle; or if they're a pedestrian or on a bicycle - you may avoid some sleepless nights worrying about protecting your personal assets from a lawsuit.
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1Serving Bronx neighborhods of: Baychester, Bedford Park, Belmont, Castle Hill, City Island, Clason Point, Country Club, Eastchester, Edgewater Park, Fieldston, Fordham, Hart Island, High Bridge, Hunts Point, Kings Bridge, Longwood, Melrose, Morris Park, Morrisania, Mott Haven, Mount Eden, Mount Hope, Norwood, Olinville, Parkchester, Pelham Bay, Port Morris, Rikers Island, Riverdale, Schuylerville, Soundview, Spuyten Duyvil, Throgs Neck, Unionport, University Heights, Van Nest, Wakefield, West Farms, Westchester, Westchester Square, Williamsbridge and Woodlawn.
