Generally speaking, when you’re talking about automobile insurance, there are additional provisions of coverage that could be afforded to you. Those are for uninsured motorists (UM) and underinsured motorists (UIM). Uninsured motorist coverage basically covers you if, in fact, you’re seriously injured in an auto accident, and the third party that’s responsible for injuring you has no insurance. So, if the person that caused the accident has no insurance but you were smart enough to have uninsured motorist coverage, in that instance, you can go to your own insurance carrier and say, “Hey, yes, they were wrong. Yes, they messed up. The accident was caused by their fault, but they had no insurance. So because I had this provision, this contractual provision, that was uninsured motorist coverage, let me make a claim against my own policy for that amount or up to the maximum amount, depending on my extent of injury.”

Underinsured motorist coverage (UIM) basically says, “Well, they may have had coverage, but it wasn’t enough to properly compensate me.” So, if they had $50,000 in coverage but I have underinsured motorist coverage of $250,000, and I suffered a fractured hip, and my pain and suffering were $250,000, then I get to first secure their $50, which is all they had as a maximum, and then come and seek the rest for my underinsured motorist coverage, which is the $200 (that’s the $250 minus the $50). So that’s underinsured motorist coverage, and they’re both great provisions to have and to add onto your policy.