Nearly 20 percent of drivers in Washington don't have insurance
A lot of people drive around without insurance. It’s about 17 percent of the motorists in Washington, according to the latest report from the Insurance Research Council. That means we are the seventh worst state in the country for uninsured drivers.
"You can buy coverage to protect yourself and those in your vehicle from others on the road who are not carrying enough liability insurance or who may not have any insurance at all,” said Kenton Brine, president of the NW Insurance Council. “That coverage is called Uninsured Motorist coverage or Underinsured Motorists coverage."
While it's against the law to drive without insurance, uninsured motorist coverage and underinsured motorist coverage are optional in Washington. Insurance companies must offer you this coverage, but you can decline it.
So, what happens if you do that?
"If you were hit by an uninsured driver or someone who doesn't have enough coverage to pay for your damages or injuries, that is going to end up being on you and come out of your own pocket to pay for damages to your vehicles or injuries to passengers or yourself while you're in your car,” Brine said.
The Northwest Insurance Council tells me the cost of adding uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage to a policy is typically between 5-10 percent of your annual premium.
More Info:
Facts + Statistics: Uninsured motorists
