Personal Umbrella

Personal Umbrella

Personal Umbrella

Personal Umbrella policies or excess liability policies protect you from liability when you other insurance does not or when your other insurance is exhausted.  If you are already well-insured in other areas, an umbrella policy may not seem necessary.  However, it is important to keep in mind that judgments in lawsuits can easily reach into the millions, and will frequently exceed the coverage in specific lawsuits.  You are responsible for the amount of a lawsuit that exceeds insurance coverage limits.  For the average person, a huge judgment against them can be financially devastating, resulting in judgments and liens against your property and altering your ability to obtain credit.  For a person with more significant personal wealth, these large judgments can endanger your personal assets.  Personal umbrella policies exist to protect assets and protect you against judgments for your negligence.  These policies generally offer high coverage amounts and are designed specifically to protect you against high-dollar judgments in lawsuits.  Like other insurance policies, they also usually cover the costs of defending a lawsuit, as well, which provides an additional layer of protection.  Remember, a lawsuit does not have to be successful to be financially devastating to the defendant; court costs and attorney fees can easily reach into the tens of thousands even when defending against a frivolous suit.