Common misconceptions about motorcycle insurance
Insurance is a word that evokes a range of emotions; it can imply safety, but it can also be confusing when determining what is and isn't protected by your policy in the event of a failure. As motorcycle insurance experts, we understand how perplexing this can be. To assist you, we've explained four of the most common misunderstandings about insurance.
False belief: "I'm covered by health insurance. My motorcycle policy does not require medical payments coverage."
Since they have health benefits, many people opt out of medical compensation (also known as "med pay"). They believe that their health insurance would cover all of their medical bills if they are injured in a motorcycle accident.
Med pay, which is voluntary in most jurisdictions, covers appropriate medical costs (as well as funeral costs) in the event of an injury, regardless of fault. It is usually secondary to a person's health insurance, but it may become primary coverage if the person does not have health insurance, if their health insurance excludes motorcycle-related accidents, or whether they are on Medicare or Medicaid. Med pay also assists with out-of-pocket costs that traditional health insurance policies do not cover, such as deductibles and copays—expenses that can quickly add up! The amount of coverage varies by state and insurance company, but it normally applies to you and all passengers riding with you on your motorcycle at the time of the crash, regardless of fault.
Before you buy a policy, it's important to assess your insurance needs and optional coverages, such as medical payments. We've seen situations where a person loses their job and, as a result, their health care, and then has an accident. Without med pay, you can have few options for recouping any of your accident-related medical expenses.
Myth: "My credit history has nothing to do with the cost of my insurance."
The use of insurance scoring to calculate an individual's insurance rate is becoming increasingly popular in the insurance industry. Insurance scores have been shown to accurately predict whether or not an individual would file an insurance claim. But don't mix up an insurance score with a credit score. The risk of making an insurance claim differs from the risk of having bad credit. Although your salary isn't factored into your insurance ranking, "responsibility style considerations" such as your credit card payment history, the number of revolving accounts you have, the number of new accounts you have, the existence of collection accounts, bankruptcies, and foreclosures are.
A few important points to keep in mind when it comes to insurance scoring:
- Insurance scoring is more of a measure of financial responsibility than it is a measure of income, education, race, age, or gender.
- Insurance scoring, unlike credit checks when applying for a loan, is a "soft strike" query on your credit that has no effect on your credit score.
- Despite the fact that many insurance providers have access to your insurance score, they do not have access to your credit score or background.
Insurance scoring may or may not be used by each insurance provider for a variety of reasons. Given all of the variables taken into account when calculating an insurance ranking, it is a reliable indicator of a person's conduct, allowing for better alignment when calculating insurance rates.
Misconception: Comprehensive and collision coverage are interchangeable.
Comprehensive and collision are two concepts that are widely used in the insurance industry.
Collision: Protects your bike from physical harm when it collides with or is collided with another vehicle or entity.
Comprehensive coverage protects against harm that isn't caused by a collision, such as robbery, arson, vandalism, weather damage, or hitting an animal. "Other than collision," or OTC, is another name for it.
Although comprehensive and collision coverages are both optional, most lienholders insist on them—and rightly so. Comprehensive and crash coverages are designed to get you back on the road as soon as possible after your bike has been repaired. If you're riding a motorcycle and get into an accident, there's a good chance you'll sustain some injury.
Remember that comprehensive and collision coverages only apply to damage to your motorcycle. If you do harm to someone else's car or property and are held legally liable, your property damage insurance plan will pay for those damages.
Myth: "My automobile driving record has nothing to do with my motorcycle insurance."
When shopping for motorcycle insurance, you'll almost always be asked to report any injuries or violations you've had in the previous three years.
Statistically, whether driving a car or riding a motorcycle, a person's driving activity is consistent. As compared to someone without any injuries or violations, someone with numerous accidents and/or violations is considered a higher insurance risk. Your insurance premiums would almost certainly be higher than if you had a clean driving record as a result of the elevated risk.
Fortunately, “behavior” variables will work in your favor as well. When receiving an motorcycle insurance quote, preventative measures such as completing motorcycle safety classes would be taken into account, and you could be eligible for premium discounts.
We hope that this information has cleared up any misunderstandings you might have had about motorcycle insurance. Please call us at 800-236-2453 if you have any additional questions or concerns, and we'll do our best to get you the answers you need.