Auto Insurance Rate Increase
Do you know how much insurance coverage you have if you are involved in a motor vehicle accident? If you do not know, I urge you to look right now. I’ll wait.
This is too important to ignore.
Before you get behind the wheel again today or go sit in the passenger seat of a car, be sure you KNOW what your insurance coverages are. If you are involved in an accident in New Jersey, your coverage follows you as an individual first. If you have questions about insurance coverage when you are involved in a car accident, do not hesitate to give our office a call for a FREE consult.
If the answer to the above question is that you have what we call a 15/30 policy, that is the absolute minimum coverage you can have in New Jersey. It allows for you to be covered for $15,000 per individual and $30,000 TOTAL coverage for individuals hurt in a car accident if that accident was your fault. If you have a 15/30 UM/UIM policy, then that is $15,000 of coverage that you provide for yourself per accident if someone ELSE causes an accident where you are injured and they are uninsured or underinsured.
Now here comes the curveball: If you have one of these 15/30 policies, they are no longer allowed. Governor Murphy signed a bill into law that goes into effect in January of 2023 in New Jersey (so, right now) that requires you to have a MINIMUM of 25/50 coverage ($25,000 per individual and $50,000 total per accident).
This is a good news/bad news situation. It is good news because it forces everyone to have insurance policies with higher minimum limits in New Jersey so that if they cause a motor vehicle accident with injuries, there is more coverage to go around. So, if you are seriously hurt and an accident is not your fault, you’re not going to be stuck with a small recovery due to low coverage limits. The bad news is that your insurance rates are going to go up to pay for the increase in minimum coverage.
Contact Hasner and Hanser
At Hasner and Hasner, PA, we understand that affording coverage in New Jersey is difficult and that this will make it a little more expensive. There are other ways to save on coverage, and you should always know what you have. So, do not hesitate to call us for a FREE consult to review your automobile insurance coverage, so that we can let you know what we recommend and your options to make things cheaper.
-David
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