Accidents are why people have homeowners and auto insurance, but often claims can exceed the coverage limits of these policies. So if you aren’t protected by a Personal Umbrella Policy, you could be putting your house and financial assets at risk.
One of the best ways to understand the need for a personal umbrella is to review actual claims examples. It is very clear that an incident arising from just normal daily activities can expose all of us to the potential for a large claims law suit.
Boating fun quickly turns serious**
The claim arises out of a boating accident. The policyholders are the owners of a speedboat, which is considered a “family” boat and made available to other members of the family for recreational use.
Several family members were camping at a lake near the policyholders’ residence. One of the policyholders allowed them to use the boat during their stay. The policyholders’ 15-year-old grandson was allowed to take three other family members (all minors) out on the lake to go tubing. The 10-year-old claimant had just finished tubing. The tube and tow rope were placed in the stern of the boat and the claimant was sitting next to them.
The conditions on the lake suddenly became very choppy and windy. The claimant was ejected from the rear of the boat along with the tube and the tow rope. The tow rope wrapped around the claimant’s neck, causing a significant injury.
The occupants of the boat recovered the claimant and headed for the dock, flagging down the sheriff’s patrol boat on the way. The claimant lost consciousness and the deputy had to administer CPR several times. She was airlifted to the hospital.
The claimant suffered an injury to her neck, trachea, esophagus as well as a fracture of the second cervical vertebrae. She was on a ventilator for 96 hours and in ICU for almost one month. Later, she developed serious complications to her pancreas, colon and gall bladder and suffers from ongoing extreme hoarseness with continued troubles with her breathing.
The RLI Personal Umbrella Policy contributed $700,000 on top of the primary coverage limits of $300,000.
A real life claim as related by RLI Insurance on their website www.rlicorp.com.**
Call SWFL Insurance Agency at 239-265-9577 for a premium proposal for an Umbrella Liability Policy.