Category: Automobile

Be careful when you walk through a parking lot.  The National Safety Council reports that 60,000 persons are injured and 500 or more die from the 50,000 plus crashes that occur in parking lots and garages each year.  It is estimated that one out of every five car accidents occurs in parking lots.

Pedestrians, and especially small children, are at especial risk from cars backing out of parking spaces and distracted drivers.  Blind zones can be created by large vehicles or trucks parked next to a backing out vehicle may block a driver’s vision for persons walking behind their car.  Not all motor vehicles are equipped with back-up cameras and small children cannot always be seen in the rear view mirrors.  NHTSA estimates that 22% of children (ages 5-9) killed in traffic accidents were pedestrians and many were victims of backing up vehicles.

The distracted driver who is texting, making telephone calls, sending emails, watching videos, eating, looking for something in the car interior or grooming is another hazard in a parking lot.

Parking lots can also cause injuries to pedestrians from broken or uneven pavement, potholes, and accumulated snow and ice.  Not every parking lot owner has a good maintenance program in place.  Stepping into these uneven, deep or slippery surfaces can cause you to lose balance, trip and fall and injure yourself.

Many injuries suffered in a parking lot result in good personal injury claims,

Uninsured Motorist Coverage is the insurance bargain that protects your family against the driver who does not have any automobile insurance coverage.  Even though Pennsylvania law requires every automobile to be insured, uninsured drivers may constitute as many as 1/3 of all drivers.  The uninsured driver includes the person who did not pay their insurance premium; who drives a car without the owner’s permission; who drives a stolen car; who uses the car for hire (jitney driver); and the hit and run driver.

One of the parties in the accident must have enough liability insurance to cover your losses.

You can hope that the other driver has a large liability policy.  Or you can protect your family and yourself by purchasing adequate uninsured motorist coverage.

Many insurance policies reject or reduce this coverage and reject stacking.  Never agree to a rejection or reduction of Uninsured Motorist Coverage.  This coverage protects you and your family.  Buy as much of this coverage as you can afford.

In Pennsylvania, the minimum medical payment benefit that you must buy is only $5,000.  Most automobile insurance companies want to sell you either $5,000 or $10,000 worth of medical coverage.  Your insurance company may tell you that your private insurance will take care of the rest.  With today’s high cost of health care, that $5,000 benefit would only cover the most minor injury case.  The minimum amount of automobile medical payment benefit that I recommend is $50,000.  In a recent case, the health insurance subrogation claim was more than $130,000   To avoid that type of lien, I recommend asking for a quote for $100,000 in medical payment benefits.  The cost of this coverage is less than the co-pays and deductibles that may arise and would eliminate most subrogation claims.

If the other driver only has a minimum limits liability policy of $15,000, a serious injury subrogation claim could be larger than your settlement.  Protect yourself and your family.

MINIMUM RECOMMENDED

• LIABILITY – $100,000-$300,000
• MEDICAL BENEFITS – $50,000
• UNDERINSURED AND UNINSURED MOTORIST – $100,000-$300,000-STACKED
• INCOME LOSS – $1000 –$5000
• √ FULL TORT

These are minimum recommended coverages. You should increase your coverage beyond these minimums as you can afford it. A good rule of thumb is to have as much underinsured and uninsured motorist coverage as you will earn the rest of your life. This will help to protect your future earning capacity against a catastrophic loss.

Read your automobile insurance declaration page carefully. Asking an agent for “Full Coverage” may get you Limited Tort, minimum liability coverage, minimum medical benefits and no uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage.

Failure to read a contract before signing it is no excuse, absent fraud, is a well-established Pennsylvania rule of law.