Homeowners: What is medical payments to others coverage?

HAPPY ALMOST THANKSGIVING!

We are at the end of our in-depth homeowners coverage series. If you need to catch up and want to read the previous articles, click the links below:

This week we are covering medical payments to others. Medical payments to others deal with injuries that happen to a guest in your home regardless of who’s at fault. This coverage generally goes along with a personal liability claim.

How much does this cover? The limit is usually less than your personal liability coverage limit. Most policies have at least $10,000 in coverage, however this can vary from policy to policy. You need to be sure to review your policy so you understand your policy limits.

How would this apply? Well, let’s say you have some friends over and one of them gets injured on the patio. These are not serious injuries, but they still need to go to the hospital. Your medical payment limits will help cover the cost as long as the cost does not exceed your policy limit.

What if my policy limit is exhausted? This is why we highly recommend a personal umbrella policy. Umbrella policies are essentially a back up coverage. As long as the claim is a covered loss, once you have exhausted your medical payment limits, your umbrella would then kick in to help cover the excess.

As the years go on, the cost of everything continues to increase. Medical expenses being one of them. It’s is incredibly important that you sit down with your agent and go over your policy limits for each type of coverage to make sure you have adequate limits. Always prepare yourself for the unexpected. You never want to get caught having to pay out of pocket.