Like cars and trucks, motorcycles travel on public roads. As a result, they fall in the same category of required insurance coverage, regardless of the size of the motorcycle and how fast it might go. That insurance can range from a bare minimum to a full comprehensive package. At a minimum, every state requires a motorcycle to be insured with a basic minimum coverage to protect other drivers on the road in terms of liability. The amount of that coverage varies from state to state, but it basically provides two categories of protection: medical cost coverage and property recovery.
Risk Comparisons With Reality
Interestingly, motorcycles have lower costs for insurance but have a higher rate of accident frequency and, in serious cases, fatalities. Many of the accident statistics are due to the fact that motorcycles have no protection to speak of in an impact, so the rider is fully exposed to harm. Secondly, other drivers generally don’t see motorcycles on the roads with them; numerous accidents involve car drivers who never saw the motorcycle, even when it was in their direct sight – they are simply too small to notice consistently.
Choosing the Right Coverage as a Rider
The bottom line, however, is that the insurance plan a rider chooses can really impact the outcome of an accident. Clearly, minimum coverage plans meet basic requirements in a given state, but they do very little to help recovery. At the other end of the spectrum, comprehensive plans cover far more than just the road. For example, if the motorcycle gets stolen or damaged while parked, a full plan will help get a rider back on the road. The big component that matters, however, is personal injury protection, or PIP. This is the coverage element that helps a rider get back up on his or her feet after an injury the most. With minimal or no medical coverage, a rider is really taking a chance on the road. Because of the typical severity of motorcycle accidents, it’s rare for a rider to come out of an impact unscathed.
There’s no question that the more coverage that is included in a plan, the better off a rider will be. That said, most folks are on a budget and don’t want to overpay for a risk that never happens. Ideally, comprehensive is best, but it’s also possible to work up to a better plan over time. However, riders should never go without coverage at all. There’s simply too many chances of being hit or making a mistake on a motorcycle and it turns into something serious every day. Coverage isn’t a question of whether to have it or not; it’s a metric of how much can be applied.
