Reduce Your Monthly Budget By Eliminating Duplicate Insurance Coverage

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Copyright © 2010 Quinton Becker


There's absolutely no sense in paying for the same insurance coverage from multiple insurance companies. This is an area where a lot of consumers could eliminate some unnecessary spending from their family budget.

The two main areas to look for duplicate coverage is medical coverage and road assistance plans.

About Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Insurance

Keep in mind that some states require residents to carry Personal Injury Protection (PIP) insurance, with their automotive insurance. If your state requires PIP coverage, then this will be an item that you cannot eliminate from your automotive insurance.

PIP insurance is required in any state that utilizes "no-fault" automobile insurance laws. No-fault automotive insurance was developed in Canada in 1947, on the premise that it would result in quicker settlements of claims and that it would reduce premium costs because it lowered legal fees and court costs.

A few U.S. states began to adopt "no-fault" automotive insurance, as a result of spiraling insurance costs. Massachusetts was the first in the United States to adopt "no-fault" automotive insurance laws. Since then, the District of Columbia and 11 additional states have adopted "no-fault" insurance. Besides Massachusetts and the District of Columbia, "no-fault" states include: Florida, Kentucky, Kansas, Hawaii, Michigan, New Jersey, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania, Utah and North Dakota.

If you do not live in one of the "no-fault" insurance states, then you are not required to carry PIP insurance. If you have a good health, life and disability insurance policy, chances are that you already have PIP coverage with your health insurance policy. If your health insurance policy provides PIP coverage and you are carrying PIP insurance coverage on your automotive policy, then you are duplicating your PIP coverage, across two policies.

If you are duplicating your PIP insurance coverage, with your health and automotive insurance policies, and you are in a state that does not require PIP coverage, then you can save money by eliminating the duplicate coverage under your automotive insurance policy.

Avoid Duplication of Roadside Assistance Protection Plans

Another area where duplicate coverage is common is with a roadside assistance protection plan. Many drivers already have a roadside assistance plan, in conjunction with their credit card or in an automotive extended warranty package.

If you already have road assistance protection through another source, then you should definitely not purchase one through your automotive insurance carrier.

In fact, it is also recommended that you should never purchase a road assistance protection plan from your automotive insurance carrier, period!

Some insurance companies will consider a request for a tow truck, under your roadside assistance plan, to be the same as a claim against your primary auto insurance policy. In other words, the insurance company may consider a request for a tow truck, as a negative mark on your auto insurance policy, just as if you were involved in traffic accident.

Because it is so easy to find roadside assistance protection plans, from a multitude of sources, most consumer watchdog groups strongly recommend that you should purchase your roadside assistance plans from anyone, who is NOT your primary auto insurance provider.

GAP Coverage

One final possibility for overlapping coverage is if you already have GAP coverage through your credit union or other financial company. In essence, GAP coverage is a loan/lease payoff protection plan. If you already have GAP coverage through another source, then you definitely do not need the loan/lease payoff protection plan offered to you by your automotive insurance carrier.

In Closing...

During our current recession, consumers are on the lookout to find where they can cut unnecessary expenses from their family budgets. Duplicate insurance coverage, as described in this article, should provide a good starting point for eliminating unnecessary expenses.

But to be honest, even if we were not in the midst of a recession, you should take care not to pay for the same coverage through different insurance carriers...


About the Author:
When comparing car insurance quotes, be certain that you are always comparing apples-to-apples. When you understand what your auto insurance quote covers, you can make an educated decision about which auto insurance company is offering you the best value for your money. You can get auto insurance quotes from several local agents at: http://maxroo.com/updates/auto-insurance-quotes/ Oklahoma residents can get quotes and find insurance agent phone numbers at: http://CheapOklahomaAutoInsurance.com/ Written by Quinton Becker.


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