Umbrella Talk for a Rainy Day

Do You Have a Last Layer of Defense?

Ever been stuck in a torrential downpour without your umbrella or raincoat?  Of course. We’ve all been there.  If you’re anything like me, you can image that terrible feeling of the slosh in your shoe with each step.   There comes a point when you hit “terminal wetness,” and you can do nothing but hope your phone still works when you dry out.

Similarly, the last time you reviewed your insurance portfolio, did you consider what may happen if you’re caught without an Umbrella policy?  Studies have shown that serious accidents are now 23 Xs more likely to occur as a result of distracted driving.  What happens if you or a family member is involved in a catastrophic automobile accident and your auto policy pays the full limits of the policy?  Once your policy pays the limits on the policy, you may become personally responsible for anything more that may be owed.  In these situations, you can effectively become helpless.

An Umbrella policy is designed to provide an added layer of protection, typically in million dollar increments, to hedge against catastrophic events such as the aforementioned example.  These policies act as a last layer of defense to protect your assets and your family in disastrous situations. Many of these Umbrella policies even provide coverage for legal defense and retain a team of lawyers which are paid outside of the policy limit (TRANSLATION:  The legal fees do not count toward the limit of the policy.)

Umbrella policies are also EXTREMELY inexpensive.  Many times they range from $100-200 per year for a $1 million in coverage and go up from there.  They help to cover all aspects of your liability including both Personal Liability (someone injures themselves on your property) and Auto Liability such as the example above. 

If you have not considered an Umbrella policy previously, this could be an excellent time to avoid that helpless feeling of ever being stuck in the rain in waterlogged socks.