Is Motorcycle Insurance Required?

 

North Carolina state law requires that all motor vehicles operated on public roads within the state be covered by at least a minimum amount of liability insurance.  This includes motorcycles and motor scooters.  While there are a variety of other insurance coverages available to motorcycle owners, only liability coverage is made mandatory by state law. 

Liability insurance is what helps protect you from financial losses if you are found legally responsible for causing losses to others while operating your motorcycle.  These losses can be in the form of physical injuries, death or property damage/destruction.  The state has set minimum requirements for the amount of mandatory liability coverage which are as follows:

1. Bodily injury coverage - $30K per person per accident and $60K for all persons per accident
2. Property damage coverage - $25K per accident

How Much Do You Need?

While these above outlined dollar figures are the minimum amounts of coverage required, you may elect to have higher limits on your policy.  This makes sense, since an accident for which you are held liable can amount to many times these minimums.

Motorcycle liability insurance helps pay for third-party injury expenses including medical costs, lost wages, funeral costs (in the event of a death) and even long-term disability costs.  It also pays for property damage, including damage other vehicles suffer.  It may also pay toward the costs of defending you in court if you're subject to a liability suit.

With liability coverage only paying up to policy limits, it's obvious that any accident you cause could end up costing you many, many times your policy limit if you're only carrying the minimum liability amounts.  Experts recommend you buy five to ten times the required amounts, depending on how much in assets you need to protect.  You might also consider adding an umbrella policy to your coverage.  These policies typically have limits starting at one million dollars.

Additional, Optional Motorcycle Coverage

Although not required by law, there are a number of other types of motorcycle insurance coverage that are highly recommended for anyone riding on two wheels.  Statistics tell us that the majority of motorcycle insurance claims are for single vehicle accidents where liability coverage doesn't come into play.  Cyclists should consider the following:

• Collision coverage
• Non-collision (or comprehensive) coverage
• Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage
• Medical payments coverage

Some insurers will offer lower premiums for lay-up insurance when your bike is stored away for the winter.