2 Things to Know About Personal Liability and Your Home and Auto Insurance

We Americans live in a “litigious society,” meaning lawsuits are a common occurrence. With approximately 15 million civil cases being filed in the U.S. annually, it's no wonder 80% of the world's lawyers live here. This is where the business is!
Unless you're a doctor or involved in some other risk-sensitive profession, your chances of being sued may not seem great, but the number of frivolous lawsuits seeking compensation for doubtful damages continues to climb. Consider the following:

• A man in CA sued the owners of a stadium for $5.4M because he felt uncomfortable using the unisex toilets at the venue!
• A Florida couple sued a guide-dog school because one of their graduates leading a blind man around a mall “allowed” the man to step on the woman's toe!
• A woman in New York using the well-known “clapper” to turn her lights on and off sued the company because of injuries sustained from clapping too hard!

Fortunately all of these lawsuits were thrown out due to lack of merit, but many more not considered frivolous were successfully litigated. By far, the greatest percentage of civil lawsuits are the result of automobile accidents. Damages awarded from these cases can be astronomic. Two notable instances include a Texas case where the verdict granted an award of $21M and a California case that paid the plaintiff $49M.

What About Your Auto Insurance and Home Insurance Greensboro Policies?

1. While it's true that the auto and home insurance Greensboro residents carry both include a certain amount of liability coverage, the limits on these policies are typically extremely limited. The State of NC, for example, only requires liability coverage of 30/60/25 on your vehicle insurance policy. Any damages you cause in excess of these minimum limits will fall to you, which means you'll likely be facing a lawsuit.

Homeowners Coverage

2. Your homeowners insurance policy likely has significantly higher limits than your auto policy, but when lawsuit judgments extend into the millions even a $500,000 liability limit isn't enough. The only logical (and affordable) solution is to invest in an umbrella policy, sometimes called excess liability coverage, that kicks in as soon as your regular liability coverage limits are met. A good umbrella policy could easily save you from a total loss of your assets. Most people are under-insured in their liability protection. Umbrella coverage is affordable, even with coverage limits of $1M or more.