Umbrella Insurance Policy May Help In A Storm
By Tim Grant, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
Umbrella insurance policies, which offer additional liability insurance for claims exceeding your existing automobile or homeowner's insurance policies, are most commonly bought by wealthy individuals with substantial assets to protect.
But not-so-wealthy people also can benefit from the extra coverage if they own a home or condominium with a pool or trampoline, if they own a dog -- of any kind -- or if they have teenage drivers.
"If you own a home or condominium, it's definitely worth the time to look into getting one of these policies," said
Because a personal umbrella policy goes into effect after the underlying coverage is exhausted, there are certain limits that usually must be met in order to purchase the extra coverage. Most companies want policyholders to have at least
The
"Umbrella insurance is usually bought by people who have significant wealth that needs to be protected,"
Umbrella insurance is sold in
Every insurance company has its own restrictions and requirements, and there can be wide variations between companies.
"They could be sued for slander,"
"Insurance companies want to know if there is a higher chance of the umbrella policy being paid out," he said. "Any insurance company wants to know the risk they are taking."
With auto and homeowners policies, the insurance agent who writes the policy has binding authority. That is not the case with umbrella policies. The completed application must be submitted to the company for approval. With limits that can go as high as
"People used to think those individuals with a ton of assets or money were the ones who should have personal liability umbrella policies,"
If negligence is proven, the liability could fall back to the homeowner or car owner,
"The same holds true with children drivers. The parent could inherit a liability," he said, adding that. "Also the damages could exceed the limits on a homeowners policy if a contractor is hurt on the property or there is a slip and fall from a guest at the home.
"We hear more scenarios in the media of the cost of an accident exceeding a person's liability coverage and folks are starting to realize their personal assets are at risk."
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