What exactly is the EUIM Insurance Law,
and what does it mean for you?

As of July 1, 2018, insurance companies in Maryland are now required to offer you
EUIM coverage (Enhanced Underinsured Motorist) for your private passenger auto
insurance. Essentially, this means if you’re involved in a car accident this new
type of insurance will let you stack the other driver’s policy limit with your
coverage, in order to increase how much compensation you can receive.

The point is to protect you from underinsured and uninsured drivers, as well as
from insurance companies.

So what exactly does this new law mean?

Prior to this new legislation, if you were in a car accident, your insurance company
would only cover the gap between your Underinsured Motorist (UM) policy and
the other driver’s coverage. So for example, if you had a $80,000 UM coverage,
and the other driver, who’s at fault, has a $40,000 insurance policy, then the total
you’d be able to recover for the incident would have been $80,000—$40,000 from
the other driver, and the remaining $40,000 paid by your insurance company.

But if you’re in a car accident under the new EUIM law, you can now combine the
at-fault driver’s insurance policy on top of your coverage, which means you could
now receive $120,000—the full amount covered by their insurance, and the full
amount covered by yours.

Why is the new EUIM insurance policy so important to you?

Because as it stands in Maryland, $30,000 is the minimum liability coverage
required, per person, for auto insurance. So if you’re hospitalized after a car wreck,
leaving you with a $100,000 medical bill, and a totaled car, you’d be left with a
$20,000 debt that you’re personally accountable for. And forget about getting
compensated for any pain and suffering you’ve experienced, not to mention the
damage that’s been done to your car. That’s all on you now.

The good news is that under this new legislation, you’ll receive the extra coverage
if you’re in a car accident with another driver who either has:

•  The absolute minimum coverage
•  No insurance coverage
•  Or if the other driver’s insurance policy offers less coverage than yours.

However, there is a caveat…

This new EUIM coverage isn’t automatically applied to your insurance policy. If
you want to be covered, you’ll need to submit a form to your insurance provider
specifically requesting Enhanced Underinsured Motorist Coverage.

Also according to Maryland law, your insurance company must now offer you the
EUIM policy “at the time of purchase of a private passenger motion vehicle
liability insurance policy.” So, if you’re ready to upgrade your insurance, or when
it’s time to renew your current policy, be sure to talk with your insurance agent
about EUIM coverage. It could make all the difference in ensuring that you and
your loved ones are covered if you’ve been in a car accident.

For more information

If you’d like to learn more about the EUIM insurance laws, and how they can
benefit you and your family, feel free to contact the Personal Injury Attorneys at
Hassan, Hassan & Tuchman, PA. We have over 40 years of experience helping
clients settle auto accident cases, and recover the money they’re owed.

410-669-5070

Hassan, Hassan & Tuchman, PA
(Auto Accident Attorneys)