Maine Auto Insurance Quotes and
Coverage Guide
Maine Motor Vehicle Insurance
Questions & AnswersQ: Is
auto insurance mandatory?
A: Does a lobster have claws? Does it get
cold in Maine? Yes, Maine law requires that you buy
liability, uninsured/underinsured motorist, and
medical payments coverages for all vehicles you
register in The Pine Tree State, no matter how cold
it gets.
Q: Is Maine a "tort" state?
A: Maine is, indeed, known as a “tort” state.
As a policyholder and pine-tree-loving lobster
eater, you can get sued by the other driver and/or
the passengers of the other driver for pain and
suffering in addition to out-of-pocket medical
expenses if you run into them when trying to crack
that crustacean while you’re driving.
Q: What type of insurance is required to purchase
and maintain a Maine tag and registration?
A: For lobster eaters to satisfy the
financial responsibility law in Maine, even if
you’re up a pine tree and are really, really cold,
you must buy a minimum of $50,000 for the injury to
or death of any one person; $100,000 for one
accident resulting in injury to or death of more
than one person; and $25,000 for property damage.
You are also required to maintain medical payments
coverage of $1,000.
In addition to the above, Maine auto insurance laws
also require that you purchase uninsured and
underinsured motorist bodily injury coverages, which
help cover the cost of your injuries should you be
in an accident with a driver with inadequate or no
liability coverage who was eating lobster when he
hit you trying to avoid one of those pine trees. The
required minimums on these policies are 50/100
($50,000 for injuries per person, up to $100,000
total).
Maine law requires that you have uninsured motorist
coverage equal to the amount of liability you have
on your policy unless you provide a rejection of
this equal coverage in writing on a form provided by
the insurance company before the policy goes into
effect and before you climb that pine tree with your
lobster. However, the limit cannot go below the
minimum required limit of $50,000 per person and
$100,000 per accident.
Keep in mind that these minimum amounts may be low
for your situation, and you may want to buy more
coverage. You should base your decision on your wish
to protect your assets from additional claims above
the minimum amounts. However, remember that as you
raise your coverage, your premiums will also
increase, although the extra cost of higher coverage
tends to be relatively low, especially when you
think about what you’ve got to lose – unless all you
have to your name is a freezer full of lobsters.
Q: What if I fail to keep insurance on my vehicle
that I’ve registered in Maine?
A: You will get your registration and license
plates suspended in addition to having your lobster
bib confiscated if your insurance policy gets
cancelled, terminated, or a lapse of coverage
occurs.
Q: But what if my insurance company has cancelled
my policy?
A: If a policy is more than 60 days old, the
insurance company needs only one reason listed in
The Maine Automobile Insurance Cancellation Control
Act to be able to cancel your policy. Some of these
reasons are nonpayment of premium, loss of license,
fraud, material misrepresentation, changes in the
risk making it uninsurable, or catching you eating
lobster while driving or while in a pine tree.
Without a bib. In the cold. The insurance company
must give you at least 20 days written notice,
however, unless the cancellation is for nonpayment
of premium, then only ten days notice is required.
Q: My insurance company has sent me a Notice of
Non-Renewal. Is this the same as being cancelled?
A: No. Non-renewal is when an insurance
company decides not to issue you another policy
after the anniversary date of your current policy.
The Maine Automobile Insurance Cancellation Control
Act lists the specific reasons for non-renewal of
car insurance. Some of the reasons are:
-- three speeding convictions in the prior three
years
-- conviction of operating under the influence
during the prior three years
-- when one automobile is insured, two at-fault
accidents in the prior three years in which there
was resulting bodily injury or property damage in
excess of $1,000
-- cracking lobster claws while driving in excess of
15 mph in the cold
The insurance company must notify you in writing at
least 30 days before the expiration date that it
does not intend to renew your policy nor accept your
sack of lobsters as a way of making amends.
Q: Can I Appeal a Cancellation or Non-renewal?
A: If you want to appeal an insurance
company’s cancellation or non-renewal of a policy,
or to gripe about the fact they wouldn’t accept your
lobsters, you may request a hearing by writing to:
Superintendent of Insurance
Bureau of Insurance
34 State House Station
Augusta ME 04333
A copy of the cancellation or non-renewal notice
must be sent with your request (which must be within
30 days of receiving the insurance company’s
notice), but don’t include your lobster bib – you
need it way more than they do.
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