What does uninsured motorist coverage pay for?

Your own injuries, and those of people covered under your policy, when the at-fault driver has no insurance or not enough to cover the harm they caused. Depending on the policy, that can include medical bills, lost income and pain and suffering.

Is uninsured motorist coverage required?

In Illinois, yes, at least at the state's minimum limits. In Florida it isn't required, but if you buy bodily injury liability, your insurer must include it unless you reject or lower it in writing.

Does uninsured motorist coverage fix my car?

Usually not. It's mainly for injuries. Damage to your car is normally collision. Illinois insurers must tell you about separate uninsured motorist property damage coverage.

What's the difference between uninsured and underinsured?

Uninsured means the other driver has no coverage. Underinsured means they have some, but less than the harm they caused. Both are usually handled through the same part of your policy.

Uninsured motorist coverage: why it matters — From Elona’s desk

Uninsured motorist coverage pays for your injuries when the driver who caused the crash has no insurance, or not nearly enough. It’s the part of your policy that protects you from other people’s choices.

Most coverage on a car policy is about what you might do to someone else. This one is about what someone else might do to you. And it’s one that’s easy to turn down without really knowing what you signed.

What it does

Picture a crash that isn’t your fault. Normally the other driver’s liability insurance pays for your injuries. But if they have no insurance, or only a small amount, there may be nothing left for you.

Uninsured motorist coverage (you’ll see it as UM or UM/UIM) steps into the other driver’s shoes. It pays you and the people covered on your policy for injuries the at-fault driver should have paid for. Depending on your policy, that can include medical bills beyond what other coverage pays, lost income, and pain and suffering.

“Underinsured” is the second half of the name. It’s for when the other driver has coverage, just not enough for how badly you were hurt.

What it usually doesn’t do

It isn’t for your car, in most cases. Damage to your car is normally handled by your collision coverage.
It doesn’t pay for damage you cause. That’s your liability coverage.
It doesn’t replace health insurance. It works alongside it.

How it works where you live

Florida

In Florida

Florida law doesn’t require uninsured motorist coverage, partly because it doesn’t require bodily injury liability for most drivers either (Fla. Stat. 627.733 and 324.022).

But here’s the rule worth knowing: when you buy bodily injury liability on your car, your insurer must include uninsured motorist coverage at the same limits, unless you reject it or choose lower limits in writing on a state-approved form (Fla. Stat. 627.727). Under that statute, a driver whose liability limits are less than your damages counts as “uninsured” too, so the same coverage handles underinsured drivers.

Florida policies can be stacked or non-stacked. Stacked coverage can add together the limits for each car on your policy; non-stacked doesn’t. Ask which kind you have, because the form you signed decides it.

Illinois

In Illinois

In Illinois, uninsured motorist coverage is required. Every auto liability policy must include it at least at the state’s minimum limits of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per crash, and it covers hit-and-run drivers as well as uninsured ones (215 ILCS 5/143a and 625 ILCS 5/7-203).

If you carry higher liability limits, your insurer must include uninsured motorist coverage equal to them, unless you reject the higher amount or choose lower limits in writing (215 ILCS 5/143a-2). When your uninsured limits are above the state minimum, the policy must also include underinsured motorist coverage in the same amount.

Illinois insurers must also tell you about uninsured motorist property damage coverage, which can pay for damage to your car caused by an identified uninsured driver. You don’t need to sign anything to decline it: if you don’t pay for it, you don’t have it.

Why I bring it up with everyone

Because the decision often gets made in a hurry. A form gets signed at the counter, the price drops a little, and the choice carries over at every renewal after that. People don’t think about it again until the day someone runs a red light into them.

I’m not here to tell you what to buy. I just want you to make that choice knowing what it means.

Good to know

Look for “UM” or “UM/UIM” on your declarations page. If it says “rejected,” or the limits are lower than your liability limits, that was a choice someone made in writing.
You can change it. A rejection or lower limit can stay on your policy until you ask to change it.
It may follow you. Depending on the policy, it can apply when you’re a passenger in someone else’s car, or walking or biking. Ask how yours works.
Report a hit-and-run right away. Call the police and your insurer promptly. Your policy may have conditions about reporting.

Want me to check yours?

Upload your declarations page at /quote/, or send it to me, and I’ll tell you whether you have uninsured motorist coverage, how much, and what it would actually do for you.

Talk to Elona