Upcoming changes to Florida auto insurance requirements have me worried.

For the last thirty years or so, a minimum Personal Injury Protection (PIP) was mandantory. From what my agent told me, this prevented perhaps thousands of frivolous claims. Now that that minimum is scheduled to expire, how will this affect future claim rates and what additional coverage should I consider? I still plan to carry "full coverage" but are there any barriers to replace that which is being removed?

RichardBondMan

I understand FL is getting away from the "no fault" type of insurance soon and, if I correct (and I may not be) FL is going to a traditional type of "mandatory" liability insurance law. This means every veh will have to have liability insurance coverage to operate on FL roads. By the way, you can probably "google" search and get update info on the status of the pending or new FL insurance law, I just didnt have time to do that. Anyway, there really is no such animal as "full coverage" insurance... its a terminology used by the untrained and who is trained except hopefully an insurance agent. For example, in Lousianca there is a coverage called Uninsured Motorist Prop Damage but in AL there is no such coverage. Some states, for example, FL, require (or did require ? PIP (Personal Injury Protection"... no such coveage exisits in the states I am licensed in and those are AL, LA and IL. Traditional coverages, at least in those states that are not "no fault" states, are Liability bodily injury, Property Damage Liability, Comprensive and Collison, Towing, Rental, Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury and Medical Payments. Some insurance companies offer a dealth benefit, some dont, some offer bail bond coverage, some dont. So the term "full coverage" is really a term that should not be used to describe coverages. Now to answer your question specifically, and you stated "now that the minimum is scheduled to expire". I think you meant to say that the current "no fault" insurance is about the expire and will be replace by a mandatory liability law ? If that is true and correct, then you will need liabilty isnurance to drive at a minimum. If you vehicle is financed and/or you consider it worth insuring, then you want comprehensive and collision coverages. If you dont have friends, relatives from whom you can borrow a veh if your veh is in the body shop awaiting repairs for several weeks and you need a rental car, you want rental coverage. If you dont want to pay a towing fee or pay to have someone come and unlock your vehicle if you left your keys in the ignition, then you need towing or roadside assistance coverage. If you are concerned about being injuries by an uninsured or hit and run driver or even an underinsured motorist and are fearful of loss of wages or medical expenses, then you want Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injuy coverage, and finally if you are concerned about your expense incurred due to you being injured or your guest or passengers being injured while in your veh, then you want Medical Payments coverage. And finally, yes, if the prior "no fault" law is in fact replace by a mandatory liab ins law, then there will no longer be 'no fault" insurance to purchase rather there will now be mandatory liab insurance that will be required to be purchased. All the other coverages you may want or not want will simply be optional.

RichardBondMan

I was watching Atty's on TV last night, FL Atty's, they both said the FL no fault law is still in effect.

CaptainRich

Only for a short while. Oct 1st, I think I was told. There was last ditch effort to keep the program alive, but that's too late now...

Since my OP I sat with my agent and she explained it well. The changes in coverage for the PIP portion will begin at my renewal, Nov 8th, because it's less than six weeks left. And believe it or not, when I bolster my expiring policy to cover the items that will be going away, my premiums will actually be less.

This is Florida's Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles

Florida Motor Vehicle Insurance - Answers - General Information

The date on their page is current but the information is not. Contact your agent!

Jacqui1978

I currently work for Allstate Ins co in Orlando, Florida...Pip was removed from Florida effective 10/1/2007. Instead of us being a no fault state we turned into a tort state. However, PIP will be back on everybody's policy effective 1/1/2008. Certain insurance companies will add it back on to your policy now if you request it. If not, I suggest adding the highest medical payments limits you can and make sure that you have uninsured/underinsured motorist liability to your policy to protect you. If you own a home or have assets I suggest that you increase your Bodily injury liability to at least 100/300.
The next couple of months will be difficult because some people have the PIP and some people do not so claims will be paid based on the situation at hand.