I read it was good to get an umbrella policy if you have a teen driver (we do). Through our insurance, the policy would be $1m for $50/mo. I also looked at just upping the bodily injury portion of our ca rinsurance to $500k per person/$1m per accident for $25/mo more on our car insurance premium.
Either way, my husband thinks it’s ridiculous because we don’t have that much net worth and nothing close to $1m for someone to go after. We don’t own a home, we have around $150k in retirement accounts, and around $125k in savings. He thinks our current auto insurance ($300k per accident) is sufficient. Unsure what to do.
Teen driver + umbrella policy
byu/Ok_Courage_6766 inInsurance
Posted by Ok_Courage_6766
3 Comments
IIRC they can garnish wages for up to 10 years.
Garnished wages is something to consider to like the other comment said.
Can be up to 10 years, depending on age.
Umbrellas will help cover more than just a car accident, too.
Umbrella policies have been getting a lot more expensive this year because people end up using them more and more.
Everyone hiring personal injury lawyers and going to court to get paid out at policy limits and beyond.
IMO, umbrellas are some of the best policies to get in the USA. Especially if you have kids.
Here’s the thing: You don’t have to have a million dollars to be sued for a million dollars. If something happens, an Umbrella policy gives another layer of protection, not just as an extension on your Auto policy, but also on your Home policy, and depending on your company, for things that aren’t covered by your Auto or Home policies (stuff like being sued for Libel, Slander, Wrongful Imprisonment, among a whole list of other things).
If you have an at-fault accident, and someone needs a lot of expensive medical care, your existing $300k may not be enough to take care of them, and you’ll be on the hook for the rest of it. And someone has already mentioned that wages can be garnished for up to 10 years, so if you don’t have the funds to pay those bills, the courts can still find a way to keep you paying until you’ve paid what you’re responsible for.
Umbrella coverage is just like Auto and Home insurance: you hope you never have to use it, but if something happens, it’s too late to get it. Better to have it and pay about $75 more each month now than to have something happen, and now you’ve got wages being garnished for up to 10 years.