If you have resided in another US state, you might celebrate the low minimum required insurance for your motorcycle in California. Land Home Insurance Services wants you to understand how the state’s low insurance mandate can hurt you though.
Mandated Motorcycle Insurance
In California, you only need to carry property damage and bodily injury coverage to comply with the law. Your bike policy must at least provide the following coverage:
- $5,000 for damage to personal property,
- $15,000 for bodily injury to or death of one person involved in an accident you cause,
- $30,000 for bodily injury to or death of all individuals involved in an accident you cause.
While that makes your insurance rather reasonable, it doesn’t fully cover you. For example, although your bodily injury coverage pays for $15,000 of medical bills for an individual since the typical night’s stay in a hospital costs about $8,000, just one day and night of medical treatment could exhaust your coverage. The law says that if police or the court finds you at fault for the accident, then you incur the liability for all medical and property damage.
If the person you hit with your bike required $50,000 of medical treatment, your insurance covers $15,000 of it. You pay the rest out of pocket. The court can garnish your paycheck and some government payments to pay this debt. So, carrying a reasonable amount of insurance offers a better solution.
Important Optional Insurance
The state-required coverage also does not cover your motorcycle or trike. If you wipe out a patch of black ice and tear up your bike, you need collision coverage for your insurance to pay for the damages. Otherwise, getting your bike fixed comes out of your pocket.
Add comprehensive coverage to protect your bike from California’s earthquakes, hail damage, and other natural hazards. If you ride out of state, your coverage goes with you, so your bike receives protection from Colorado wildfires, Oklahoma tornadoes, North Dakota snowstorms, and much more.
To protect your own health, choose personal injury protection (PIP) coverage. It pays for your medical bills regardless of who caused the accident. If you get hurt because a deer ran out in front of your trike, your PIP covers your medical bills.
Get Coverage For Your Motorcycle Today
Contact our team of insurance experts at Land Home Insurance Services to purchase full coverage motorcycle insurance. We can help you benefit through better coverage than the state minimums.
