Rick Howard: Can you expalin to me what are combined limits and split limits under an auto insurance policy? How do I review auto insurance limits for this?

Response: Please see the map attached for the auto insurance liablity limits for each state.
“Liability” is a legal term that refers to responsibility which one owes to another person’s injury or loss. While questions about who is liable for what are typically decided in court through the tort law as it is called. The liability settlements can be anywhere from thousands to millions of dollars. Having an insurance policy to protect you from such things is more than a good idea. In most states it’s the law.
Liability insurance is coverage from your car insurance company that pays the damages when you are in an car accident. Claims will cause an increase in your premiums, but that still far outweighs the alternative, which is a court settlement.

Liability insurance for cars comes in two basic types, based on how the insurance coverage limit is determined. The limit is the maximum your insurance company is required to pay on your behalf if you are in an accident. The different types are split limit and combined single limit policies.

A combined single limit combines property damage liability coverage and bodily injury coverage under one single combined limit. For example, an insured driver with a combine single liability limit strikes another vehicle and injures the driver and the passenger. Payments for the damages to the other driver’s car, as well as payments for injury claims for the driver and passenger, would be paid out under this same coverage.

A split limit liability coverage policy splits the coverages into property damage coverage and bodily injury coverage. In the example given above, payments for the other driver’s vehicle would be paid out under property damage coverage, and payments for the injuries would be paid out under bodily injury coverage.

Bodily injury liability coverage is also usually split as well into a maximum payment per person and a maximum payment per accident.
The split limits and the combined limits are smart ways for insurance companies to minimize their losses.

Now, here is a tip which you must always keep in mind that you must review both your split and combined limits individually and combined in order to decide whether they are optimum since for example if only one person is fataly wounded and that person is the key person if the limit per person (split limit) is only $500,000/- but your accident limit is 1 million you will get only $500,000 from the insurance company.
Review car insurance policy before you buy your insurance and even afterwards with any change.

Have a wonderful day.

Brad : I live in Georgia and a friend of mine was telling me that I should take an Uninsured motorist coverage since I would be at an advantage. Can you let me know more of this. What is stacking of limits? How will this affect my auto insurance?

Response : You need to constantly compare auto insurance quote both for coverage and also the rates. You need to take an uninsured motorist coverage to get the benefit if someone who is uninsured gets involved in an accident with you and injuries you and he is at fault. Let me show you how it would work for you if this happens. Presently there are a lot of people in USA who do not have an auto insurance policy and are uninsured.

In Georgia, underinsured motorist protection falls within the uninsured motorist statute.
Prior to the effective date of the new statute [January 1, 2009] an insured can only access up to the difference in the liability provided by an at-fault driver’s liability policy limits and the limit provided the insured under his/her uninsured motorist coverage. Thus, if the at-fault driver had a $50,000 liability limit and the not at-fault other driver had an uninsured motorist limit of $100,000, the maximum protection for the not at-fault driver from his/her uninsured motorist coverage is only $50,000. The insured taking coverage from his/her uninsured motorist limit is not entitled to the full limit provided under current law.
At-fault driver = $50,000 Liability Payment
Not at-fault driver = $100,000 UM Limit
Payment due from UM Coverage = $100,000 – $50,000 = $50,000¹
In the same loss situation above, if the at-fault driver had a $50,000 liability limit and the not at-fault driver had a $50,000 uninsured motorist limit, the not at-fault driver would not be entitled to any payment under his/her uninsured motorist coverage.
At-fault driver = $50,000 Liability Payment
Not at-fault driver = $50,000 UM Limit
Payment due from UM Coverage = $50,000 – $50,000 = 0
Beginning January 1, 2009 insureds will be able to get the benefit up to their full uninsured motorist limit when an at-fault uninsured/underinsured motorist is responsible for damages. The change simply means that the full amount of selected uninsured motorist limits can be used as an additional limit of coverage, without offset, from the liability limit of the underinsured at-fault motorist. For the examples above the formulas would change as follows:
At-fault driver = $50,000 Liability Payment
Not at-fault driver = $100,000 UM Limit
Payment due from UM Coverage = $100,000

Beginning January 1, 2009 the Uninsured Motorist statute expressly allows an insurer to “exclude”[offset] personal or bodily injury or death payments for which the insured has been compensated “pursuant to medical payments or workers’ compensation laws.”

The premium payable for this coverage of uninsured motorist is very less almost meger compared to the advantage you can obtain if this accident takes place. Make sure you compare car insurance quotes and review auto insurance coverage to ensure that you have taken the Uninsured Motorist coverage.
Good luck.
Kamlesh