What Is Umbrella Insurance, and Do I Need It?

From destructive storm damage to your home to a dent in your car, accidents can and will happen. Indeed, life is unpredictable; therefore, it’s natural to want to be protected against any possible worst case scenarios. Thankfully, insurance policies are plentiful — ranging from home and auto to health and life insurance. However, with all these options, it may be difficult to pinpoint one that you need the most. Furthermore, without the right insurance policy, you may be faced with the unfortunate circumstance of not having enough money to pay for such damages. Fortunately, umbrella insurance policies can cover you in a wide range of areas, rain or shine.

What Is Umbrella Insurance?

An umbrella insurance policy can help protect your assets against large liability claims. In other words, it protects against legal damages that may be your fault, and those that exceed your limit of home and auto insurance policies.

With such a broad range of coverage, umbrella policies cover both legal defense costs and claims against you, like those of libel and slander. Another unique feature is that these policies only take effect after you reach the limits of your other insurance policies. That way, you can choose your limit based on the policies you previously had.

Umbrella insurance is great for those who have many personal assets or are frequent targets for lawsuits. For example, people with large-breed dogs or professional athletes are more at-risk for lawsuits due to the high amount of injuries from both cases.

Benefits of Umbrella Insurance

There are several key benefits to umbrella insurance that can give you peace of mind. 

• Family and pets are covered – If something were to go wrong and cause harm to your loved ones or furry friends, your umbrella insurance policy would cover the costs.
• Protects you against delayed retirement – Should an unexpected liability lawsuit dig into your savings, an umbrella policy will minimize this damage and make it less likely to happen.
• Relatively inexpensive compared to other policies – Because umbrella insurance policies don’t take effect until you reach your limits on home and auto insurance, you would pay less. For example, a $1 million umbrella insurance policy could cost you between $150 and $300 a year.

Costs of Umbrella Insurance

It is also important to understand the costs of umbrella insurance. For example, there may be coverage qualifications that require you to have a certain amount of money on your auto or home insurance policies before you qualify for an umbrella policy.

Additionally, there are limits to what is covered. You will not be protected against punitive damages or court-ordered restitutions by personal acts of wrongdoing. Lastly, an umbrella policy does not protect against liability claims for your business, meaning that you will need a separate business insurance policy.

Get Quality Protection at Corkhill

Whether you are in need of umbrella insurance or additional coverage, the experts at Corkhill Insurance Agency are prepared to provide you with helpful advice to make your insurance selection process seamless. Service is our policy and we are committed to ensuring that you get the coverage that you want and need. If you have any questions about our professional services, please give our Orlando agency a call at 407-898-8891.