Bodily Injury: General Information and What You Should Know About Coverage

Bodily injury liability coverage is an element of many different types of insurance policies (auto, homeowner’s and business insurance) and is meant to protect an individual should physical harm come to him or her through the action or inaction of another.

Auto Insurance and Bodily Injury Coverage

There are generally six parts to an all-inclusive auto insurance policy: personal property liability, personal injury protection (PIP), uninsured motorist coverage, comprehensive coverage, collision and bodily injury liability. Personal property liability covers the policyholder against property damage he or she causes in the event of an accident; PIP covers the policyholder and his or her passengers in case of injury; uninsured motorist coverage protects the driver in the event that he or she is involved in an accident with another driver who is uninsured; comprehensive coverage protects the car owner against theft and natural disasters; and, collision coverage pays for repairs to the policyholder’s vehicle should it be involved in accident. The bodily injury portion of the coverage is designed to protect the policyholder in the event that he or she causes physical injury to another person while operating a vehicle.

Every U.S. state requires that drivers in their jurisdictions include a set minimum amount of bodily injury coverage as part of the auto insurance policy. These state-mandated limits, however, are generally not enough to cover a very serious accident and most insurance experts suggest purchasing more than the legal minimum. In the event of a serious bodily injury claim and subsequent lawsuit, a policyholder could be in jeopardy of losing his or her home and property. Those who have substantial assets to protect might also want to consider purchasing an umbrella policy that provides supplemental coverage to the existing ones.

Homeowner’s Insurance and Bodily Injury Coverage

One of the most nightmarish scenarios any homeowner can imagine is one in which a visitor to the home is seriously injured in some way. Friendships and family ties have been broken over such circumstances and finances have been left in ruin. Every responsible homeowner should review his or her existing homeowner’s policy and determine what sorts of accidents or injuries are the responsibilities of the homeowner and which are not.

All homeowner’s policies offer some sort of bodily injury liability coverage for both visitors and residents. This coverage protects against just about every possible circumstance that could lead to physical injury in the home and includes injuries caused by the homeowner and anyone residing within the home. Any injuries caused by household pets are also covered.

There are some situations, however, in which bodily injury that occurs on a homeowner’s premises is not covered by the homeowner’s insurance policy. If the homeowner runs a business from the home and the injury sustained relates to the business in any way, there is no coverage. If the injury occurs in a rented property, then the homeowner’s insurance will not cover it – renter’s insurance should contain the necessary coverage. Another circumstance in which coverage is not provided through the homeowner’s policy is when the injury is proven to be intended or expected by the homeowner.

Business Insurance and Bodily Injury Coverage

There are two types of insurance that every business owner needs in order to ensure that he or she is not left vulnerable to lawsuits stemming from bodily injuries that occur at the place of business – liability insurance and workman’s compensation insurance. Liability insurance (optional) is purchased separately from any other policy and protects the policyholder in case anyone within the place of business is injured. If the property is not actually owned by the business owner then whoever does own the property will have to carry an additional liability policy or be added to the business owner’s existing one.

Workman’s compensation coverage is designed to protect the employees of a business in case they are injured while on the job. Every state requires that businesses carry it and each jurisdiction has a different set of rules for how it works. In general, the employee is covered for any death or injury that occurs on the job or any illness that is caused by the job. Workman’s compensation coverage covers medical expenses, rehabilitation expenses, lost wages and any other costs incurred because of the injury or illness. Although an employee is covered even if the accident leading to injury is his or her fault, intentional acts are not covered - neither is those injuries sustained because of drug or alcohol use.