what is the difference between stacked and unstacked uninsured motorist coverage in Florida?

Question

In NY, from which state we've just moved you did not have to choose between stacked and unstacked uninsured motorist coverage. I'm not sure which is a better option.

Answer 1

Uninsured motorist coverage is usually listed in ways such as 10/20, 25/50, etc. That means $10,000 per person, $20,000 max per accident. This coverage is for each vehicle on the policy. If you stack the coverage and have 2 cars, you can collect the coverage from both vehicles on your policy if you have a claim (therefore doubling your coverage--$20,000 per person/$40,000 per accident). If you have 3 cars, you collect from all three vehicles (tripling coverage).

Unstacked means separate and you only collect from the vehicle you are in at the time of the accident.

Stacked coverage is more expensive, but is a great way to get additional coverage for a relatively small increase in premium.

If you only have one car--you want to choose unstacked. Otherwise you pay more with no additional benefit.

I hope that helps!

Answer 2

Stacked is a little more expensive than unstacked would be. The basic concept of stacking is if you have more than one vehicle and are in an accident in which you use the uninsured motorist coverage and the coverage on that vehicle is not enough you would be able to go to the next vehicle on the policy and collect under the uninsured motorist on that vehicle. That is the really basic explanation of the coverage. If the difference in price is not much I would go with stacking. Best to discuss this with your agent.

Answer 3

If you have uninsured motorist coverage, then you can chose between stacked and non-stacked.
The stacked costs about $30 more per policy period than the unstacked.
What the difference is can be explained this way:
Say you have two vehicles, each with $50,000 uninsured motorist coverage.
If you have an accident in one of those vehicles, then you can float the $50,000 coverage from the other vehicle, to the wrecked one, and then you will have $100,000 coverage for that one instead of the $50,000 that you originally had.
This is called stacked.

In the unstacked case, your limit would be $50,000 on each vehicle with no float.

Answer 4

Unstacked is cheaper, and covers you if you only have one vehicle. Stacked covers more than one vehicle. However, be aware that some companies have been cheating customers. To quote from a news article:

Six insurance companies are accused of routinely charging owners of one car for collision coverage that is useless to them.
A half-dozen auto insurance companies in Florida are being sued for allegedly overcharging customers for coverage against collisions with uninsured motorists.

The six related lawsuits filed Monday in Pinellas County focus on customers who insure a single vehicle. Some insurance companies routinely charge such customers for "stacked" coverage designed for multiple-vehicle owners instead of less-expensive "unstacked" coverage, the suits charge.

This is from 2002, so perhaps it has stopped now. http://www.sptimes.com/2002/08/28/news_pf/Business/Suit__Car_insurers_ch.shtml for the rest of the article.

Answer 5

One more consideration is that if you sometimes drive another persons car or if you ride a bike or walk alot, unstacked UM will not cover or follow you. Stacked UM will follow you. So even if you own just one vehicle it may be worth it to pay a little more and get stacked.

Answer 6

This is a question. One vehicle two drivers. stacked or unstacked?

Answer 7

Leonard Parker and Tyrone Williams asked the same question. You should see their answers side by side.

Answer 8

It's good