Bike Insurance Coverage: How Much Should I Get?

One of our recent articles discussed the importance of bike insurance. Protecting your bike in case of an accident is very important, and there are multiple ways to do so. In our insurance article, we highlighted the different forms of bike insurance coverage. Knowing what these different forms are is important, but so is knowing how much bike insurance coverage you should have. In this article, we want to help you figure that out.

The Basics of Bike Insurance Coverage

The three forms of insurance include:

• Liability Coverage
• Personal Injury Protection
• Uninsured and Under-insured Motorist Coverage

All Utah drivers are required to carry liability coverage. Most drivers only carry the minimum amount of coverage, which is $25,000 per person. This means that if you are hit by a driver while cycling, the driver’s insurance will only pay you up to $25,000. In the case of a serious accident, this may not be enough to cover your damages. This is when the other two forms of insurance become important. Here is a breakdown of these forms of bike insurance coverage, and how much you should carry:

Personal Injury Protection

• This insurance helps pay for your injuries after an accident. This is an extremely important form of bike insurance coverage. It protects your immediate medical needs. The amounts of PIP coverage available include:
  • $3,000 — this is the minimum required amount
  • $5,000
  • $10,000
  • $100,000
• It can be very helpful to purchase additional PIP coverage beyond the minimum amount. The more you have, the better you will be protected in case of a serious bike accident.

Uninsured and Under-insured Motorist Coverage

• These forms of bike insurance coverage are not required by law. However, we highly recommend that you carry them. They protect you and help cover your medical costs after being hit by a driver without proper car insurance.
• We strongly suggest that cyclists carry at least $100,000 in both of these forms of insurance. Cyclists may be able to increase this coverage to $250,000 for as little as $8 per month. If you have the means to do this, we strongly suggest that you do.

Carrying sufficient bike insurance coverage can make the aftermath of an accident much easier to deal with. We encourage to review your current coverage and make improvements, if you can. If you have questions about your options or need help after a bike accident, contact Utah’s Bicycle Lawyers today. We are dedicated to helping you.