How Are You Doing On That New Year’s Resolution?

Almost everyone makes them, and most of us quickly break them.  In fact, only 8% of New Year’s resolutions are kept and 80% of us can’t even make it until February.  So if you have already broken your New Year’s resolutions, you have plenty of company.  But here is some good news: we have three EASY things you can do in the New Year that will make you and your family safer and better protected, and none of them involve losing weight.

1. Take fifteen minutes and review your auto insurance coverage and check for two things. First, make sure you have sufficient protection for your assets.  All too often, we represent clients who were seriously injured by folks, who have money and assets, but do not buy enough insurance coverage for the harm they caused.  For instance, they own a half-million dollar home and own other assets but they only have minimum limits in auto insurance coverage.  In those situations, we will demand (assuming our client wants us to do so) personal contribution from those individuals to ensure our client is fully compensated.  While we do not like to do this, our responsibility is to our client and we will do what is in their best interest.  Second, review your coverage to make sure you have uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage.   Many folks do not understand this coverage is for YOU.  If you get seriously hurt in an auto accident by someone who does not have auto insurance or who does not have enough insurance to compensate you for your injuries, UM/UIM can provide you the compensation you need, and it is relatively inexpensive.   We recommend you purchase the higher limits of UM/UIM insurance so that you are adequately protected.
2. Set aside a little bit of time to make sure your vehicles are registered with the manufacturer. This is especially important if you purchased a pre-owned vehicle.  By registering your vehicle with the manufacturer you are ensuring you will receive recall notifications in a timely manner.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards work together to ensure manufacturers recall any vehicle with a safety defect.   Bonus points if you register your other products with the manufacturer.
3. Be a safer driver by activating the Do Not Disturb feature on your phone so that you are not alerted to incoming texts while driving. Most phones have the ability to turn this feature on any time your phone is connected to your vehicle’s Bluetooth.  In the event you do not have Bluetooth or do not like to use that feature, it can also be used manually.  I will confess I have known about this feature for a while but have never used it.  Do you know what finally prompted me?  A little bit of peer pressure.  Some friends started using it and I began getting messages from them that told me they were driving and would respond to my text later.  Actually seeing the feature in action made me realize how great it was and now I have it on my phone.

And there you have it: three easy things you can do to make you safer and better protected in 2018, and all three can be done in roughly thirty minutes.  So, no excuses.

Good luck with your other New Year’s resolutions.  And, if you have an injury case you would like to discuss for free with one of our award-winning lawyers, give us a call at 615-742-4880 (Nashville) or 615-867-9900 (Murfreesboro) or 866-812-8787 (toll-free).  We handle all accident cases on a contingency basis.