Does Motorcycle Insurance Cover Medical Bills in North Carolina

There are plenty of places to ride your motorcycle or scooter in North Carolina. The state has a variety of scenic routes that wind through the mountains and along the coast. Before taking your bike out on the road, be sure to check the weather conditions and dress appropriately for the ride. According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation, in 2019, there were 3,516 total motorcycle accidents, with 184 people killed in crashes and 2,728 people suffering injuries.

Motorcycle accidents can be very serious, often resulting in severe injuries. In some cases, medical bills can be astronomical, leaving the injured person with a large bill to pay. If you are involved in a motorcycle accident in North Carolina, does your insurance policy cover your medical expenses?

Is Motorcycle Insurance Required in North Carolina?

North Carolina requires all motorcycle and motor scooter operators to purchase liability insurance for their vehicles. Motorcyclists must also carry a valid insurance card with them at all times.

Motorcycle Bodily Injury Coverage

North Carolina law requires all motorcycle and motor scooter operators to purchase bodily injury liability coverage with limits of at least $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident. This coverage will pay for the other party’s medical expenses if you are found at fault for an accident.

Motorcycle Property Damage Coverage

North Carolina also requires all motorcycle and motor scooter operators to purchase property damage liability coverage with a limit of at least $25,000. This coverage will pay for the other party’s vehicle damages if you are found at fault for an accident.

Uninsured (UM)/Underinsured (UIM) Motorist Coverage

Uninsured motorist coverage (UM) compensates you when an at-fault driver fails to carry liability insurance. Underinsured (UIM) motorist coverage may compensate you when the at-fault driver carries liability insurance but it is not enough to compensate you for all of your damages. Uninsured motorist coverage is required in North Carolina. Motorycle and motor scooter riders automatically receive $30,000 in uninsured motorist coverage when they purchase $30,000 in liability. Underinsured coverage is optional and must be added to a policy.

Uninsured (UM)/Underinsured (UIM) Motorist Coverage and Medical Expenses

Your uninsured motorist coverage will mirror your insurance liability policy. Your uninsured motorist insurance limits are typically the same if your policy pays up to $30,000 per injured person and $60,000 per accident.

Underinsured motorist coverage is optional in North Carolina. In order to receive coverage, you must add UIM coverage to your policy.

However, even if you have UM and UIM coverage, your policy may not cover all your expenses. If your injuries cost $50,000 in medical bills and your policy limit only goes up to $30,000, you will have $20,000 in outstanding medical bills you are responsible for.

Other Insurance Coverage Options for Medical Expenses in North Carolina

In addition to the coverages required by North Carolina law, other insurance coverage options are available that can help pay for your medical expenses in the event of a motorcycle accident. These include medical payments coverage and health insurance.

Motorcycle Medical Payments Coverage

Medical payments coverage, also known as med pay, is optional insurance coverage that can be added to your motorcycle insurance policy. Med pay will cover any reasonable and necessary medical and funeral expenses due to an accident regardless of fault.

Most medical payments coverage policies will cover the following expenses:

  • Hospitalization
  • Surgical treatment
  • Anesthesia
  • X-rays and lab tests
  • Ambulance transportation
  • Funeral services (up to a certain amount)

It’s important to note that each insurance company has different coverage limits for medical payments coverage. Be sure to check with your agent or insurer to see what your policy includes.

Health Insurance Coverage

If you have health insurance, it will likely cover some of your medical expenses following a motorcycle accident. However, there may be some out-of-pocket costs, such as a deductible or co-pay, that you will be responsible for.

It’s important to check with your health insurance provider to see what is covered under your policy. You may also want to consider getting additional coverage, such as med pay, to help cover any expenses not covered by your health insurance policy.

Regardless of your insurance coverage, it’s important to always wear a helmet and protective gear when riding your motorcycle or scooter. This will help protect you in an accident and may help reduce the amount of medical expenses you incur.

Wearing a Helmet Can Help Reduce Medical Expenses

North Carolina requires all motorcycle riders to wear a helmet. Wearing a DOT-approved helmet can help reduce the severity of injuries in the event of an accident and, as a result, may help reduce medical expenses.

In addition to wearing a helmet, be sure to wear other protective gear, such as gloves, boots, and a jacket. This will help protect you from road rash and other injuries in an accident.

By taking these precautions and carrying adequate insurance coverage, you can help ensure that you are protected in a motorcycle accident.

What Happens If I Don’t Have Insurance?

If you are involved in a motorcycle accident and do not have insurance, you will be responsible for all of your medical bills. This can be a costly proposition, especially if you need to go to the hospital or require long-term care.

Your medical bills will be covered up to your policy limit if you have insurance. In addition, if you are found at fault for the accident, your insurance company will also pay for the damages to the other party up to your policy limit. This is why it is so important to have adequate motorcycle insurance coverage.

Other Motorcycle Insurance Policies

There are other types of motorcycle insurance policies available, such as GAP coverage, rental car reimbursement, and collision and comprehensive coverage. These types of coverages are not required by North Carolina law but may be offered by your insurance company.

GAP Coverage

GAP stands for guaranteed asset protection. GAP coverage covers the ‘gap’ between your car’s depreciated value and your remaining loan balance, in the event your car is declared a total loss. The purpose of GAP coverage is to prevent you from having to make a loan payment on a car you no longer possess, in a situation where the at-fault driver has caused your car to be deemed a total loss.

Rental Car Reimbursement

You must have rental reimbursement included in your auto policy in order to have your insurance cover the cost of a rental car after your accident. Oftentimes it can take up to two weeks or more before your vehicle is repaired or it is deemed a total loss, leaving you with no transportation. Rental reimbursement coverage is typically available for a nominal fee. For more information on rental car reimbursement, contact your auto insurance company.

Collision Coverage

If you want your own vehicle repairs to be covered after an accident, regardless of who is at fault, you will need to purchase collision coverage. This optional coverage is not required by North Carolina law, but it is available for motorcycle and motor scooter operators who wish to purchase it.

Comprehensive Coverage

Another optional coverage that is available for motorcycle and motor scooter operators in North Carolina is comprehensive coverage. This type of coverage will pay for repairs to your vehicle if it is damaged by something other than a collision, such as fire, theft, or vandalism.

Contact a Motorcycle Accident Attorney for Help With Insurance Coverage Matters

If you have been involved in a motorcycle accident, contact The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor. Our attorneys can review your policy and help you understand what coverages are available to you. In addition, we can help negotiate with the insurance companies on your behalf and make sure that you get the full benefit of your coverage.

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Notice of Data Security Event
Updated March 28, 2025

The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor is providing notice of an event that may affect certain individuals’ information. Although we have no indication of identity theft or fraud in relation to this event, we are providing information about the event, our response, and additional measures individuals can take to help protect their information, should they feel it appropriate to do so.

What Happened? On October 28, 2024, The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor identified suspicious activity related to our email system. We quickly took steps to investigate and determined that an unknown actor may have accessed certain emails within our email system between August 7 and November 7, 2024. We then conducted a comprehensive review of the potentially affected emails and attachments to determine what information was contained therein and to whom the information related, which was completed on February 25, 2025. Unfortunately, we were unable to verify the addresses of certain affected individuals, so we are providing this notice to ensure potentially affected individuals receive information about the event.

What Information Was Involved? The information affected may include individuals’ Social Security number, driver’s license and state ID information, financial account number, and health information.

What We Are Doing. We are notifying individuals about this matter and providing guidance about free resources that are available to assist with monitoring relevant accounts, credit reports, and how to place a fraud alert or security freeze on one’s credit file. Further, as with our typical security practices, we will continue to evaluate our policies, procedures, staff training, and technical security measures to reduce the likelihood of an event like this reoccurring.

What Individuals Can Do. We encourage you to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud by reviewing your account statements and monitoring your free credit reports for suspicious activity and to detect errors. We also recommend you review the below “Steps Individuals Can Take To Help Protect Personal Information”.

For More Information. If individuals have questions about this matter, we have a dedicated assistance line with agents ready to answer their questions. Please contact our toll-free dedicated assistance line at 1-800-939-4170, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. through 9 p.m., excluding holidays. You may also write to us at The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor, Attn: Compliance, P.O. Box 2688, Hickory, NC 28603.

Sincerely,

The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor

STEPS INDIVIDUALS CAN TAKE TO HELP PROTECT PERSONAL INFORMATION

Monitor Your Accounts

Under U.S. law, a consumer is entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. To order a free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call, toll-free, 1-877-322-8228. Consumers may also directly contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below to request a free copy of their credit report.

Consumers have the right to place an initial or extended “fraud alert” on a credit file at no cost. An initial fraud alert is a 1-year alert that is placed on a consumer’s credit file. Upon seeing a fraud alert display on a consumer’s credit file, a business is required to take steps to verify the consumer’s identity before extending new credit. If consumers are the victim of identity theft, they are entitled to an extended fraud alert, which is a fraud alert lasting seven years. Should consumers wish to place a fraud alert, please contact any of the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below.

As an alternative to a fraud alert, consumers have the right to place a “credit freeze” on a credit report, which will prohibit a credit bureau from releasing information in the credit report without the consumer’s express authorization. The credit freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in a consumer’s name without consent. However, consumers should be aware that using a credit freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in their credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application they make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or any other account involving the extension of credit. Pursuant to federal law, consumers cannot be charged to place or lift a credit freeze on their credit report. To request a credit freeze, individuals may need to provide some or all of the following information:

1. Full name (including middle initial as well as Jr., Sr., II, III, etc.);
2. Social Security number;
3. Date of birth;
4. Addresses for the prior two to five years;
5. Proof of current address, such as a current utility bill or telephone bill;
6. A legible photocopy of a government-issued identification card (state driver’s license or ID card, etc.); and
7. A copy of either the police report, investigative report, or complaint to a law enforcement agency concerning identity theft if they are a victim of identity theft.

Should consumers wish to place a credit freeze or fraud alert, please contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below:

Equifax Experian TransUnion
https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/ https://www.experian.com/help/

https://www.transunion.com/credit-help
1-888-298-0045 1-888-397-3742 1-800-916-8800
Equifax Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 105069 Atlanta, GA 30348-5069 Experian Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013 TransUnion Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 2000, Chester, PA 19016
Equifax Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 105788 Atlanta, GA 30348-5788 Experian Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013 TransUnion Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 160, Woodlyn, PA 19094

Additional Information

Consumers may further educate themselves regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, credit freezes, and the steps they can take to protect their personal information by contacting the consumer reporting bureaus, the Federal Trade Commission, or their state attorney general. The Federal Trade Commission may be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20580; www.identitytheft.gov; 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338); and TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them. Consumers can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above. Consumers have the right to file a police report if they ever experience identity theft or fraud. Please note that in order to file a report with law enforcement for identity theft, consumers will likely need to provide some proof that they have been a victim. Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement and the relevant state attorney general. This notice has not been delayed by law enforcement.

For District of Columbia residents, the District of Columbia Attorney General may be contacted at: 400 6th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001; 1-202-442-9828; and oag.dc.gov.

For Maryland residents, the Maryland Attorney General may be contacted at: 200 St. Paul Place, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202; 1-410-576-6300 or 1-888-743-0023; and https://www.marylandattorneygeneral.gov/.

For New Mexico residents, consumers have rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, such as the right to be told if information in their credit file has been used against them, the right to know what is in their credit file, the right to ask for their credit score, and the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. Further, pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the consumer reporting bureaus must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information; consumer reporting agencies may not report outdated negative information; access to consumers’ files is limited; consumers must give consent for credit reports to be provided to employers; consumers may limit “prescreened” offers of credit and insurance based on information in their credit report; and consumers may seek damages from violators. Consumers may have additional rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act not summarized here. Identity theft victims and active-duty military personnel have specific additional rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. We encourage consumers to review their rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act by visiting www.consumerfinance.gov/f/201504_cfpb_summary_your-rights-under-fcra.pdf, or by writing Consumer Response Center, Room 130-A, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20580.

For New York residents, the New York Attorney General may be contacted at: Office of the Attorney General, The Capitol, Albany, NY 12224-0341; 1-800-771-7755; or https://ag.ny.gov.

For North Carolina residents, the North Carolina Attorney General may be contacted at: 9001 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-9001; 1-877-566-7226 or 1-919-716-6000; and www.ncdoj.gov.

For Rhode Island residents, the Rhode Island Attorney General may be reached at: 150 South Main Street, Providence, RI 02903; 1-401-274-4400; and www.riag.ri.gov. Under Rhode Island law, individuals have the right to obtain any police report filed in regard to this event.
STEPS INDIVIDUALS CAN TAKE TO HELP PROTECT A MINOR DEPENDENT’S PERSONAL INFORMATION

Typically, credit reporting agencies do not have a credit report in a minor’s name. To find out if a minor has a credit report or to request a manual search for a minor’s Social Security number each credit bureau has its own process. To learn more about these processes or request these services, consumers may contact the credit bureaus by phone, writing, or online:
Equifax Experian TransUnion
https://www.equifax.com/personal/help/article-list/-/h/a/request-child-credit-report/
https://www.experian.com/help/minor-request.html
https://www.transunion.com/fraud-victim-resources/child-identity-theft

1-800-685-1111 1-888-397-3742 1-800-916-8800
P.O. Box 105788
Atlanta, GA 30348-5788 P.O. Box 9554
Allen, TX 75013 P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19016

To request information about the existence of a credit file in a minor’s name, search for a minor’s Social Security number, place a security freeze or fraud alert on a minor’s credit report (if one exists), or request a copy of a minor’s credit report consumers may be required to provide the following information:
● A copy of their driver’s license or another government issued identification card, such as a state identification card, etc.;
● Proof of address, such as a copy of a bank statement, utility bill, insurance statement, etc.;
● A copy of the minor’s birth certificate;
● A copy of the minor’s Social Security card;
● The minor’s full name, including middle initial and generation, such as JR, SR, II, III, etc.;
● The minor’s date of birth; and
● The minor’s previous addresses for the past two years.

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