New Jersey No Threshold Option?

Question

[Please do not explain this option to me, as I understand it. Thank you.]

I presently carry the option to sue for pain and suffering on my NJ auto insurance. When this first came in about 30 years ago, it only made about $100 difference in my individual premium. Now, with 3 cars and 3 drivers, it is more than 25% of my total premium. It's reached the point where I am considering whether to drop the option and give up the right to sue, unless the injury meets the specified qualifications. (If you are not familiar with this list, you can't really answer my question.)

Do you have any experience in this area or any suggestions? Do you think it's worth the expense of holding onto that "no threshold" option in the event of some crazy neck or back injury that can't really be diagnosed or treated? Do you have any random thoughts about the "no threshold" option in New Jersey?

If you have a least or most favorite company, I'd be happy to hear about them, too.

Thanks for your input.

Cost is NOT my only concern. I am just contemplating what to do to get my family (3 cars - 3 drivers) down below $8,000. I would not dream of going with some companies named and others not named, because their reputation for poor handling of claims and clients is horrible. I will stick with my "top tier" company, but I'm looking at cutting about $2,200 out of my premium if I drop the right to sue for non-scheduled injuries.

I have the maximum of any coverage offered, including PIP and disability, as you mentioned. This will factor into my decision.

Answer 1

I'm afraid there's no one good answer for this question. All insurance is a gamble - you're betting you won't need it, but you have to balance what you're willing to pay in premium now vs how you'll feel if (G*d forbid) something happens later on to someone in your familiy that doesn't breach and you have no legal recourse. A personal injury lawyer would be horrified you're even asking, full tort/whiplash BI claims are their bread and butter... and, in my opinion, are also the reason your rates jumped so much in the first place.

After about 17 years in the insurance industry, I personally dropped my tort option to "limited" (our version of verbal threshold). However, I greatly raised my med pay/PIP portion and wage loss to balance that out. Raising these to decent levels (+100k) was still considerably less premium than full tort.

I personally figured that if it was just a soft tissue injury, as long as my meds and my work loss was covered, I'd be fine. If the injury was severe, I'd breach. The only case where I'd want to be punative about it is if the other driver was DUI, in which case I'd get an automatic breach of the threshold in my state anyways (and likely yours as well.) There's also a few other non-injury circumstances, such as out-of-state vehicles, uninsured vehicles, etc.

For me, I'm happy with my decision. I think sometimes the insurance industry sells coverages on fear and not need. Get your agent to work up a few cost alternatives with increased PIP/Med Pay & wage loss coverage and see what you think. I'm afraid I can't compare apples to apples cost-wise because New Jersey is its' own animal when it comes to auto insurance.

In the end, like any other insurance coverage, you'll got to weigh the likelyhood of needing the coverage versus the cost to you.

As far a company referrals, I'm afraid I haven't bought insurance in NJ in years (originally from Montclair!) but I recommend sticking with the big names - State Farm, Allstate, Nationwide if your concern is service. What I consider the 'upstart' companies (Geico, Progressive) tend to have the best rates out of the gate, but if you have a claim, fuggedaboutit. Your rates will double and the service after the initial call is iffy at best. Just my opinion. If your only concern is cost, find an independent agent who can run you through a few companies for estimates.

Best of luck.

Answer 2

I would keep the zero tort if I were you. We were hit by a driver speeding and racing, who crossed over the double yellow line hit our truck on driver side and then flipped us. My whole family with 3 little kids in the truck. Wife and I have cervical and lower back problems:( Hard to get lawyers to take case with the limited lawsuit bs:( Accident was almost 9 months ago and both of us are still suffering with pain. I made the change to unlimited and it increased insurance over $700 on two cars:( New Jersey laws suck and their rates are double of what we paid in Virginia and we had better insurance in Virginia. I would keep it if you can, to many idiot drivers out there and its bound to happen! Good luck with it.

Answer 3

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