I. What automobile insurance is required by Florida law?

Florida Law requires that a vehicle owner (of four wheels or more) purchase a minimum of $10,000.00 of Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and a minimum of $10,000.00 of Property Damage Liability (PDL) insurance.

II. What basic coverage is available to an insured (or qualifying individual)?

Personal Injury Protection (PIP) –minimum of $10,000.00 (with or without a deductible) – REQUIRED

1. Reasonable Medical Expenses – paid at eighty percent (80%) of two-hundred percent (200%) of the Medicare fee schedule amount.
2. Wage loss reimbursement – paid at sixty percent (60%) for any loss of gross income and loss of earning capacity (per individual with proper doctor recommendation) for the inability to work as a result of  an injury sustained in a motor vehicle accident  – paid not less than every 2 weeks.
3. Expenses Reasonably Incurred – in obtaining from others ordinary and necessary services, but for the injury, the injured person would have performed without income for the benefit of his or her household.
4. Death Benefit equal to the lesser of five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) or the remainder of unused personal injury protection (PIP) benefits per individual.

What to look out for….

-          Pay yourself as soon as possible – expenses – wages, mileage, etc.
-          Avoid wage loss exclusions from your auto insurance policy.
-          Avoid high deductibles if you are unable to pay it when necessary.
-          Notify your insurance carrier of all household members, particularly licensed resident relatives.
-          Attend and be on time to any independent medical exams (IME) requested by your insurance carrier- this is required by an insured per contract, but it is often intended to limit/terminate PIP/Med Pay benefit coverage.

Medical Payment (Med Pay) – Twenty percent (20%) of the remaining balance due to medical providers not paid by PIP benefits (as paid under the Medicare schedule) – Med Pay is generally purchased up to a certain dollar amount.

What to look out for….

-          Med Pay does not cover wage loss, household expenses, etc.
-          Possible subrogation rights on third party liability claims.
-           Med Pay is paid at 100% and no longer subject to the Medicare fee schedule once PIP benefits have been exhausted.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM) Coverage – Per individual/per accident coverage for an insured, his/hers resident relatives, and or his/her accident passengers (if in an insured vehicle is involved in a motor vehicle accident) caused by an uninsured or underinsured motorist.

1. Stacking – when an insured combines uninsured motorist coverage from more than one source/policy.
2. Non-stacking – limited to one vehicle only.

What to look out for….

-           Cover yourself first – add at least minimal coverage to your insurance policy – many insurance carriers fail to clarify what UM coverage is and/or its importance to an insured and his/her family.

Property Damage Coverage (PD)

1. Comprehensive coverage – Damage done to an insured’s vehicle other than collision.
2. Collision coverage – Damage done to an insured’s vehicle as a result of a motor vehicle accident/collision.

What you to look out for…

-          High deductibles.
-          Conduct a cost-benefit analysis on old, high mileage or damaged vehicles.
-          If comprehensive coverage is purchased in Florida it is sometimes possible to receive free windshield repair or replacement.

Rental coverage

Maximum rental allowance per day or per accident coverage.

III.  What coverage is available to another party if an insured driver (or qualifying individual) causes a motor vehicle accident?

Bodily Injury (BI)

Per individual /per accident.

What to look out for….

-          Not required by Florida Law.  However, an individual’s drivers license may be suspended and you may be required to purchase BI for three (3) years if you are found to be at fault for an automobile accident without BI coverage.
-          No duty for insurance carrier to defend an insured against lawsuits if no BI was purchased.
-          Personal assets may be more susceptible if no BI is purchased or if it is not sufficient coverage for the damages  sustained.

Property Damage Liability (PDL) - REQUIRED

Per accident

What to look out for….

-          Personal assets may be more susceptible if no or not enough coverage is purchased.

Cynthia M. Thomas, Esq., is a personal injury attorney with Bogin, Munns, & Munns, P.A., a full service law firm with offices in Orlando, Clermont, Kissimmee, Deltona, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Melbourne, Gainesville, and Leesburg, Florida.  She welcomes questions and comments regarding the above and can be reached at cthomas@boginmunns.com

NO LEGAL ADVICE: This blog entry is not intended as legal advice nor should you consider it as such. It is intended only as general information.  You should not act upon this information without retaining professional legal counsel. Please keep in mind that merely subscribing to or reading this blog or otherwise contacting Bogin Munns & Munns, P.A. in the manner that you have will not establish an attorney-client relationship with our firm. Bogin Munns & Munns, P.A. cannot represent you until the firm knows there would not be a conflict of interest, and the firm determines that it is otherwise able to accept the engagement. The engagement would also be confirmed by a written agreement.

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