Personal Insurance Blog

Under Compulsory insurance you are required to purchase 4 parts.

Under Optional insurance you may purchase 8 additional parts.

Under Compulsory insurance you must purchase Bodily Injury to Others & Bodily Injury Caused by an Uninsured Auto

Under Bodily Injury to Others the company will pay damages to people injured or killed by your auto in Massachusetts accidents.  The damages the company will pay are the amounts the injured person is entitled to collect for Bodily Injury through a court judgement or settlement.  The company will pay only if your or someone else using your auto with your consent is legally responsible for the accident.  The most they will pay is $20,000 per person or $40,000 per accident.  The coverage only applies if the accident causing Bodily Injury that happens in Massachusetts, and does not apply to guest occupants of your auto.

Bodily Injury Caused by An Uninsured Auto.  This is Part 3 of the auto policy.   Sometimes an owner or operator of an auto legally responsible for an accident is uninsured.  Some accidents involve unidentified hit-and-run autos.  The company will pay damages for Bodily Injury to people injured or killed in certain accidents caused by uninsured or hit-and-run autos.  The company will pay only if the injured person is legally entitled to recover from the owner or operator of the uninsured or hit-and-run auto. The company will pay for hit-and-run accidents only of the owner or operator causing the accident cannot be identified. Sometimes the company insuring the auto responsible for the accident will deny coverage or become insolvent.    The insurance company will consider an auto to be uninsured for purposes on this part.  However, the company does not consider an auto owned by a government unit which is self-insured, or by someone who is legally self-insured, to be an uninsured auto.  You must purchase at least $20,000 per person and $40,000 per accident.  However you may want to purchase more protection.  You cannot purchase higher limits on this part (part 3) unless you purchase higher limits on Optional Bodily Injury to others (part 5).

The company will pay damages to or for you, or household members, while occupying your auto, while occupying an auto you do not own, or if injured as a pedestrian.

Optional Bodily Injury to Others (part 5) The Company will pay damages to people injured or killed in accident if you or a household member is legally responsible for the accident.  They will also pay is someone else is using your auto with your consent is legally responsible for the accident.    The amounts the company will pay are the amounts the injured person is entitled to collect for Bodily Injury through a court judgement or settlement. 

Unlike the Compulsory Bodily Injury to Others (part 1), this coverage will pay for accidents that happen outside of Massachusetts.  Subject to the limits you selected.

If the accident occurs in any other state or in a Canadian province and you have purchased any coverage at all under this part, your policy will automatically apply to that accident, as follows, if the state or province has a financial responsibility law or similar law requiring limits of liability for Bodily Injury higher than the limits you have purchased.  Your policy will provide the higher required limit.  Example, you purchase a limit of $35,000 per accident/$80,000 per accident, you have an accident in a state that requires $50,000 per person/$80,000 per accident, your policy will automatically give you the higher limits for that accident.

The last is Bodily Injury Caused by an Underinsured Auto (part 12).  Sometimes an owner or operator of an auto legally responsible for an accident is underinsured.  By purchasing this item the company will pay for damages for Bodily Injury to people injured or killed as a result of certain accidents caused by someone who does not have enough insurance. 

If you’re injured in an accident and you have large medical bills, more than the amount per person that the legally responsible party has on their policy, and you have higher limits, then you could put in a claim on your policy to get the remaining payments paid.

Say you have medical bills of $60,000.  The responsible party only had $20,000 per person/$40,000 per accident.  Their policy will only pay $20,000 towards your bill.  You are responsible for the remaining $40,000.  If you have purchased this coverage with $100,000 per person/$300,000 per accident, you could then put in a claim under your policy for pay the $40,000 that you responsible for.

In order to purchase higher limits on part 3, Bodily Injury caused by an Uninsured Auto and part 12 Bodily Injury caused by an Underinsured Auto, you must also purchase the same limit or higher limits on part 5 Optional Bodily Injury to Others.  A good way to look at this is on part 5 Optional Bodily Injury to Others you are buying protection to protect someone that you might injure, you should also buy protection for yourself in case you are hit by someone who is uninsured or underinsured.

A good rule of thumb is you should purchase the same limits on all 3 parts, Bodily Injury caused by an Uninsured Auto, Optional Bodily Injury to Others and Bodily Injury caused by an Underinsured Auto.