Ohio has 21 different Interstate Highways that bisect it and in total these add up to over fifteen-hundred miles of roads, and the fourth largest interstate highway system of any of the states that any motorcyclist can enjoy.
In this article I am going to talk about how important getting good Ohio Motorcycle Insurance is for motorcyclists in the state, and dig into some of the state requirements when it comes to being covered on the roads of Ohio for your motorcycle.
What are the minimum state requirements for Ohio Motorcycle Insurance?
There are certain minimum requirements that are set down by the state insurance department as to the levels of cover that you need to ride legally on the roads of Ohio.
These are as follows:
$12,500 – Bodily injury liability for one person
$25,000 – Bodily injury liability for one accident
$7,500 – Property damage liability cover
These are typically referred to in a shorthand way as 12.5/25/7.5 cover.
Are the Ohio Motorcycle Insurance Minimums Really Enough To Be Properly Covered?
The main focus of any state minimums is to provide some kind of safety net for the residents of that state by insisting that they get certain levels of cover before being able to ride their bikes on the public highways.
Comparing the levels of cover that Ohio asks for to virtually any other state and it is quite striking how low the minimums are in Ohio. Typical levels of minimum cover in the other states would be at least double the Ohio minimums (25/50/25 is about the average across all of the states), and some are even higher (it is 50/100/25 in Maine).
And remember, that even though these other state levels are twice or even three times higher than what the Ohio minimums are, they are still only ‘minimum’ requirements, or in other words what those states felt were the very least amount of motorcycle insurance that anyone should have.
So, when you are considering the levels of liability insurance and property damage liability cover that you should really have, it might be worth looking at the numbers across all of the states as a better guideline as to the minimum Ohio Motorcycle Insurance you should buy, and go for a policy that offers more realistic amounts of cover.
The average cost of a hospital stay in the United States in 2010 was $14,427 according to The International Health Professionals Federation, and so on that basis given even an average stay in hospital after an accident on your motorcycle and you would have exceeded the Ohio minimum! And that doesn’t even account for longer hospital stays that can easily go beyond $50,000, or for the possibility of multiple people being injured and you being liable to pay all their costs.
It could end up being an expensive decision if you decide to forgo higher levels of cover, because remember that someone WILL have to foot the bill in the end, and it is surely better that it’s the Ohio Insurance Company rather than you!
Also, an amount of $7,500 for property liability damage is ridiculously low when set against the cost of new car, or another vehicle that would have been likely to be damaged in an accident. So common sense should tell you to increase that.
Sure, you could pay less for your Ohio Motorcycle Insurance if you opt to go for the basic state minimums, but you are not really buying effective protection, and in a very real sense you are not properly protected.
Other areas of cover that you should also consider buying are comprehensive Ohio Motorcycle Insurance which in addition to the medical benefits and property damage liability of a basic policy would also protect you against the theft of your motorcycle (which happens 8 times every minute in the United States), vandalism and weather damage from storms.
Be sure to read any policy documents through carefully though before committing, and make sure that you know exactly what is covered and what is excluded from your particular policy.
Another area to look into is collision cover and also uninsured motorist cover.
Collision cover would cover the costs to repair your motorcycle in the event of a collision with another vehicle, or the actual cash value of the motorcycle (most companies factor depreciation into the calculation though, so be sure that you know exactly how they calculate any proposed payout before you buy the cover).
Uninsured Motorist Cover would help to provide you with protection against drivers who drive around uninsured (approximately 15% of the total), and means that even if they are at fault, your policy would kick in and pay out if they did not have insurance to cover the potential costs of any accident.
(Remember that at all times you can get the exact legal and regulatory rules about Ohio Motorcyle Insurance from the Ohio Insurance Departments website.)
Clearly there is a lot to take in with getting a motorcycle Insurance policy in Ohio, but a good place to start is by getting some Ohio Motorcycle Insurance Quotes right now and seeing the scope of the policy that you are able to get for your particular budget.
The average cost of a hospital stay in the United States in 2010 was $14,427 according to The International Health Professionals Federation, and so on that basis given even an average stay in hospital after an accident on your motorcycle and you would have exceeded the Ohio minimum! 
