What Split Limits Mean For Your Car Insurance Policy
Many different factors go into forming car insurance quotes. Whether or not you choose to have a single limit policy or a split limits policy can influence how your insurance company handles any claims you might have. The following information will benefit anyone looking into either policy.
Single limit insurance policies have one cap on coverage should you be in an accident. For example, if you are in an accident, the most the insurance company will pay out is $200,000. That amount of money ($200,000) must cover all expenses involved in the accident — damage to your vehicle and the other vehicles involved, medical expenses, etc. You get one amount of money to cover both property and bodily injury expenses. That amount is all the insurance company is obligated to pay on your accident claim.
Split limit insurance policies offer multiple limits, or limits per type of expense. This kind of coverage usually splits the amount of coverage three ways: one cap for bodily injury coverage, one cap for property damage and one cap for all injuries for the accident. For example, you may receive a limit of $25,000 for bodily injuries, $50,000 for all injuries in the accident and $10,000 for all property damage sustained in the accident.
One difference between the two types of coverage is centered on the insurance company’s obligation and limits. In single limit coverage, the insurance provide has only one limit on the amount that they pay out. With split limits coverage, the insurance company is limited to a maximum amount on each part of the policy.
Another difference between the two types of coverage is that there is less flexibility for the customer with a split limit policy. With that type of policy, the customer is limited to the amount of money designated to a certain portion of the policy. For example, if the limit on bodily injury coverage is $25,000, then the insurance company can only pay that amount of money out on a claim, even if the actual bodily injury expenses total $35,000. With a single limit policy, the customer has flexibility regarding where and to what the money can be paid. For example, the total limit of $200,000 can be divided up in any number of ways according o the expenses themselves, as long as they do not exceed the limit of $200,000. With a single limit policy the policy holder is able to designate funds at his or her discretion.
The availability of any kind of coverage with a car insurance policy varies from insurance company to insurance company, so be sure to ask your insurance provider for more details.
