A Guide to Motorcycle Insurance in Rhode Island (RI)
Rhode Island has a relatively large population (of over a million people) given that it is the smallest state in terms of land area at just 1,214 square meters. The metropolitan area of the Capital Providence harbors most of those people, though the smaller towns of Warwick, Cranston and Pawtucket do also have sizeable populations. All of which means that Rhode Island’s Motorcyclists are primarily city dwellers, and given the high population density and the increased possibility for accidents that this brings, it is essential to get affordable Rhode Island Motorcycle Insurance that really delivers.
In this article I am going to explain some of your options when it comes to getting good motorcycle insurance in Rhode Island, and also discuss some of the state minimums for motorcycle insurance that are laid down in law.
What are the state minimums for Rhode Island Motorcycle Insurance?
There are certain minimums for Rhode Island Motorcycle Insurance that has to be met in order to ride legally on the roads of East Providence or any of the other towns and cities of Rhode Island.
These are as follows:
$25,000 – Bodily injury liability for one person
$50,000 – Bodily Injury Liability for one accident
$25,000 – Property Damage Liability Cover
This is generally shortened to 25/50/25 cover.
Do the Rhode Island Motorcycle Insurance requirements offer enough protection?
It is an important question to ask whether or not the state minimums for motorcycle insurance in Rhode Island match up to requirements, because many people will naturally assume that these figures are somehow ‘recommendations’ and that if they simply get that amount of cover that they would be adequately protected.
The reality though is that this isn’t really the case because these are minimum requirements where the focus is very much on levelling the playing field, and ensuring that everyone can ride a motorcycle in the state if they want to.
In some ways this is good, and for those on a very limited budget simply getting the state minimum levels of cover can mean the difference between being able to ride a bike or not. But you should know that there are risks involved with getting minimum amounts of cover, not least that in the event that you are involved in a really serious accident that you won’t have sufficient amounts of insurance to be able to meet all of the expenses.
Clearly you could call this a ‘disaster scenario’, and it may very well never happen, because for most minor accidents the state minimums may well be enough. But the nature of insurance should really be that you design your own levels of cover for non-ideal situations, and that even in the event of a really bad accident that you would be covered.
You may decide that you want more liability cover in order to factor in those rare occasions when the basic amounts just would not have been sufficient, and also add in extra property damage cover, because the potential costs of replacing or repairing cars that are caught up in accidents is very high.
It is also worth giving thought to getting Comprehensive Rhode Island Motorcycle Insurance which in addition to the basic liability cover and property damage cover would also add-in cover for fires, problems such as where someone had vandalised your motorcycle, and also theft.
Theft of motorcycles is a big problem in the United States particularly in cities, and so because Rhode Islands motorcycling fraternity is primarily centred in cities there is a good chance that most people would find this a beneficial type of cover to add to their policy.
Another type of cover that is not automatic with the basic minimums (you can find out more about the legal regulations surrounding the state minimums for Rhode Island Motorcycle Insurance at the Rhode Island Insurance Departments website - https://www.dbr.state.ri.us/divisions/insurance/), but which would add greatly to your peace of mind if you got it added to your Rhode Island Motorcycle Insurance would be underinsured/uninsured driver cover.
This would step in if the other driver did not have enough insurance to properly cover your costs, and because an estimated 15% of drivers fall into this category, this is a sensible thing to consider including in your policy.
At the end of the day you will have to balance out your options and make some decisions as to what you can afford to include and what you wish to leave out (or have less of) because of budget constraints.
The best way to get started on that decision making process is to get some Rhode Island Motorcycle Insurance Quotes immediately so that you can gauge accurately the likely costs of the different options.
The reality though is that this isn’t really the case because these are minimum requirements where the focus is very much on levelling the playing field, and ensuring that everyone can ride a motorcycle in the state if they want to.
