Personal Insurance
When standard coverage isn’t enough.
An umbrella policy sits above your auto and home limits and adds liability protection in million-dollar increments, usually for far less than people expect.
Why An Independent Agent
The cheapest serious protection we sell.
A bad accident or a lawsuit can go past your auto or home limits fast, and whatever is left over becomes your personal bill, wages and savings included. An umbrella policy raises that ceiling, usually in $1 million steps, for a cost most families find surprisingly small.
Coverage
What we commonly place
Not every item applies to every situation. Part of our job is telling you which ones actually matter for you.
- Excess liability above auto limits
- Excess liability above home or renters limits
- Excess liability above boat and RV limits
- Legal defense costs
- Personal injury liability (libel, slander, false arrest)
- Landlord liability on rental properties
- Worldwide coverage
- Coverage for volunteer board service (carrier dependent)
In Detail
The parts worth understanding
An umbrella does not replace your current policies. It sits on top of them.
Suppose you carry 250/500/100 auto liability and cause an accident with $900,000 in injury claims. Your auto policy pays to its limit; the umbrella responds above it. Without the umbrella, the remainder comes from you.
Because it only pays after the underlying policy is exhausted, carriers need you to carry minimum underlying limits, commonly 250/500/100 on auto and $300,000 on home. Meeting those is part of what we check.
Umbrella coverage is not only for the wealthy. It is for anyone with future income or assets a judgment could reach:
- Homeowners with equity
- Households with teenage drivers
- Anyone who hosts gatherings at home
- Dog owners
- Owners of a pool, trampoline or hot tub
- Landlords and rental property owners
- Volunteer board and committee members
- Anyone with meaningful savings or future earnings
An umbrella is liability coverage. It is worth being clear about the boundary.
It does not pay for damage to your own property, your house, your car, your belongings. It does not cover business liability under a personal policy, and it does not cover intentional acts. If you need higher limits on your own property, that is a change to the underlying policy, not an umbrella.
Local Knowledge
Why living here raises your risk.
A city full of cyclists and people walking raises what an ordinary car accident can cost you. Add all the households here with teenage drivers, dogs, or a rental unit downstairs, and the case for an umbrella gets stronger than it is in most of the country.
Underlying limits matter. An umbrella needs your auto and home policies to already carry certain minimum limits. We will check what you have now and tell you exactly what has to change before an umbrella can attach.
Lisa and Keith answer the phone here. No call center, no robots. Just North Portland neighbors helping neighbors.
The Process
Is this difficult? Not with us.
Tell us about your situation
A few quick details about what you are insuring and what you have now.
We compare carriers
We shop multiple companies to find the best combination of coverage and price.
You get a clear recommendation
Straight answers, in plain language, and often same-day coverage.
Questions
Umbrella insurance questions
How much does umbrella insurance cost?
Often a few hundred dollars a year for $1 million in extra liability coverage, depending on your household, vehicles and drivers.
What does umbrella insurance not cover?
Damage to your own property, business liability under a personal policy, and intentional acts. It is liability coverage that sits above your current limits.
Do I need umbrella insurance if I rent?
Possibly. If you have savings or future income worth protecting, an umbrella works above a renters policy just as it does above homeowners.
What are minimum underlying limits?
The liability limits your auto and home policies must carry before an umbrella will attach, commonly 250/500/100 on auto and $300,000 on home.
Related coverage
Get your free umbrella insurance quote.
We respond the same day whenever possible.