We celebrate a lot of “awareness” days in our country. National Donut Day gets more buzz than this one. But as a personal injury attorney—and more importantly, as a mother and neighbor—I’m here to make the case that National Insurance Awareness Day deserves your full attention.

Because for most people, the first time they really read their auto insurance policy is after a crash. And by then, it’s too late. Every week, I meet responsible, thoughtful people who are injured, overwhelmed and shocked to learn that the coverage they’ve been faithfully paying for doesn’t actually protect them the way they thought. Maybe their agent rushed them through the fine print. Maybe they clicked through an online application without knowing what to look for. Either way, no one ever said: “Here’s how this will actually play out if you get hit in Florida.” 

Let’s talk about that for a moment, because this part is critical: Florida doesn’t require drivers to carry bodily injury (BI) coverage on their policy!

That’s right. Unless a driver has a prior DUI or falls into a specific high-risk category, they are not legally required to carry any coverage for the injuries they cause to others. A person can be fully “insured” under Florida law and still leave you with no way to recover your losses after a serious crash. Unless you carry uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM) coverage on your own policy, you may be left with no way to pay for your medical bills, time off work, or long-term care. Unfortunately, a large percentage of Florida drivers fall into the “bare minimum” group—and they’re legally allowed to be on the road! That’s why I started offering free auto insurance policy checkups at Kushel Law Group. There’s no charge, no sales pitch; just an honest look at what coverage you have, what gaps I see, and what I’d want my own family to have in place.