Personal Umbrella Policies in Massachusetts

Homeowners, auto and other primary insurance policies provide a lot of protection, but sometimes even all of the coverage they offer isn’t quite enough. For Massachusetts residents who want more protection than their primary policies alone afford, a personal umbrella policy may be suitable.

A personal umbrella policy usually serves as a secondary insurance policy that offers supplemental liability protection. It may be used to fill in gaps left by primary policies and/or to extend protection beyond the limits of primary policies.

Anyone who wants extra liability protection may be interested in personal umbrella insurance. Some Massachusetts residents who may want a policy are:

• Wealthy individuals who may be targets of opportunistic lawsuits
• Property owners who may be sued if someone is injured on their property
• Owners of family estates who want to shield the estate from potential liability suits
• Boaters who want extra protection for potential on-water accidents

Depending on specific terms, conditions and exclusions, personal umbrella policies can cover a wide range of liability risks. A policy might offer coverage for:

• Injuries caused to other people
• Property damage caused to other people’s property
• Slander and libel claims
• False arrest or imprisonment claims

Excess liability policies are another form of supplemental liability insurance. Unlike personal umbrella policies, though, excess liability policies typically only supplement a single policy and don’t add any coverages that the policy doesn’t already afford. In contrast, personal umbrella policies may supplement multiple underlying policies at once and/or fill in coverage gaps.

Personal umbrella insurance is primarily intended to provide supplemental liability protection and therefore, usually doesn’t include protection for physical property. People can normally find all the property coverage they need for a home, car, boat or other asset through the appropriate primary policy.

A few personal umbrella policies may be able to extend coverage to small businesses, but they generally aren’t meant to insure commercial endeavors. Individuals with small businesses often need a commercial umbrella policy for their business.

Many personal umbrella policies will extend their coverage to the spouse and/or children of the policyholder. Before assuming that their particular policy extends coverage, however, policyholders should review the policy’s language to make sure they understand what protection it affords. An experienced insurance agent can help with this process.