Abbott & Fillmore Agency, Inc. - www.InsuranceMichigan.com

03/09/2026

Beware of Auto Insurance Gaps under Michigan law: Anyone unrelated live in your house? Anyone drive your cars, but not live with you? Do you have kids that moved out and still drive a car on your policy? If so, please read on for some important information on gaps in insurance coverage for Michiganders.

Gaps In Coverage For Anyone In Your House That Is Not Related or is Not a Resident of your Household
Effective 7/1/2020 the auto insurance law in Michigan changed. (Auto Insurance Reform Act of 2019)

The new law created several gaps in coverage for people in your household or others that drive and do not meet the specific definition of “resident relative”. Some of these gaps did not exist before and many people are not aware of these gaps. Resident Relative is strictly defined as a person who resides with you and is related to you by blood, marriage, or adoption.

People that have gaps could include friends or significant others that live with you, kids that have moved out, etc.

Here is a list of SOME of those gaps.
Under the revised 2020 Michigan law, these coverages will NOT extend to someone that is not on the policy AND will NOT extend to someone that is NOT a “Resident Relative” EVEN IF they are a rated driver on the policy!:
1) Michigan Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Coverage: Under the law, drivers or occupants of your vehicle are no longer provided PIP coverage (Personal Injury Protection) through your policy unless they are a named insured, a resident spouse, or a resident relative. A non-relative driver OR a relative who no longer lives in your household who is injured in an auto accident will generally have NO coverage on your policy-EVEN if they are a rated driver.

2) Accidental Death Indemnity Expense Coverage: IF you have this optional coverage, it usually explicitly limited to the death of "you or any family member". Since a non-relative is not related by blood, marriage, or adoption, they do not meet the definition of a family member and are excluded from this benefit.

3) Personal Property Coverage: If your policy includes a small limit for loss or damage to personal property,, it applies only if the property is owned by "you or a family member". It does not extend to property owned by a non-relative driver.

4) Liability and Physical Damage Coverage for Non-Owned Autos: Coverage only extends liability coverage for the use of non-owned automobiles (such as a rental car or a vehicle belonging to a friend) to "you or any family member". Therefore, a non-relative or a relative no longer living with you (even if listed as a rated driver on your policy) would not have liability protection under your policy for this. If you have Physical Damage coverage on your policy, that coverage will also NOT extend.

5) Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage: Extension of UM/UIM coverage to accidents that occur such as being a pedestrian or a passenger in another car is exclusively limited to the Named Insured and “resident relatives” who do not own an auto.

BOTTOM LINE
Please call us or your own experienced and knowledgeable insurance agent to discuss if you have any of the following situations:
a) You have someone that lives in your house that is not related. Or
b) You have anyone that drives any of your vehicles that does not live with you OR is not related to you.
Or
c) You have kids that have moved out of the house and do not have an auto insurance policy of their own.
Even if we are not your agent, feel free to call us. We at Abbott & Fillmore Agency would be happy to discuss your situation with you at no cost.

07/23/2025

🚗🎓 Parents of High School Grads & College Students — Helpful Tip to help them save $$$ on Auto Insurance down the road! 🎓🚗

If your teen just graduated or is heading off to college, now is the perfect time to help them start building a strong credit history — and yes, that can lower their auto insurance rates in the future!

Why it matters:
A good credit score isn’t just for buying a house or getting a loan — insurance companies often use credit as part of their rating formula. The better the score, the better the potential rate. This can sometimes be very annoying and sometimes seem unfair; fortunately or unfortunately, it is the way it is. So, you need to do all you can to help.

How to start:
• Add your teen as an authorized user on your credit card — many issuers report this to the credit bureaus, helping them establish credit safely.
• Or help them apply for a starter or secured credit card once they turn 18.
• Teach them to use it wisely: small purchases paid off monthly can go a long way!

This is one of the smartest financial gifts you can give them — and it can pay off in more ways than one.
*** But very important: If you get them a card, be SURE to make sure it is paid off every month. We recommend setting it up on auto payment and then making sure you keep enough money in the payment account to be sure it is paid off every month.! Otherwise, you'll end up doing more harm than good! **

Questions about how credit affects insurance? Give us a call or message us. — we’re here to help guide your family through this next chapter.

— Abbott & Fillmore Agency
📞 517-851-7777 📍 Stockbridge, MI 🌐 www.InsuranceMichigan.com

InsuranceMichigan.com has been in business since 1946 and compares several insurance companies for you including Allstate,AAA,Auto-Owners,Fremont & Progressive.

11/12/2024

All of us at Abbott & Fillmore Agency and InsuranceMichigan.com would like to give our utmost thanks to all of the Veterans for your service to our country. We greatly appreciate it and honor you today! - Jon Fillmore and all the staff at Abbott & Fillmore Agency.

10/31/2024

We save people so much money, it's SCARY! Happy Halloween everyone and be safe out there!

10/24/2024

Very good advice for Halloween. But it's actually good advice the WHOLE year long!

10/06/2024

Looking for sidewalk snow removal. We are looking for someone to do sidewalk snow removal for in front of our office in Stockbridge (and a path in the back) for the 2024-2025 season. Spec. sheet is attached. Review spec sheet and call and ask for Jon if interested. Rates on spec sheet are negotiable. - 517-851-7777.

07/04/2024

Happy Birthday America!! Everyone be careful, watch for kids, use common sense with fireworks and enjoy the holiday!

06/13/2024

75 Year Anniversary- Auto-Owners and Abbott & Fillmore. We are thrilled to share a special moment a few weeks ago! Our team had the honor of welcoming representatives from Auto-Owners Insurance Company as they presented us with a plaque commemorating 75 years of partnership.

We are incredibly grateful for this longstanding relationship and the trust placed in us to serve our community. Here's to many more years of supporting and protecting those in our community and throughout Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Arizona and Florida!

06/05/2024

Jewelry - Quick FYI and advice. If you have scheduled jewelry on your home or renters insurance and you haven't had your appraisals and insured limits updated in awhile. you may want to get them updated. The price of gold has gone up almost 80% in the last 5 years!

04/18/2024

If you see this person, wish her a Happy Retirement. Luci Stoffer has been a licensed agent serving our clients for the last 7 years. Thanks for your service, Luci! Happy Retirement!

03/11/2024

Who goes first at a 4-way stop? Helpful Tip from InsuranceDog.com
If you come to a four-way stop, the driver who arrived at the intersection first has the right of way and would go first (being watchful just in case the other dude is a bad driver).
If two or more vehicles reach the four-way stop at the same time, then the vehicle on the left should yield to the vehicle on its right (the vehicle on the right would go first being watchful just in case the other dude is a bad driver). If there is a collision, the driver on the left will likely end up with the ticket.
If four vehicles all show up at about the same time, then the one that got there first (which sometimes means the person that THINKS he/she got there first) would go. THEN the remaining cars would go in a counter clockwise manner. (So the car to the RIGHT of the one that went first, then the car to the RIGHT of that car, and then the car to the RIGHT of that one.
Remember: “right is always right”
Other Important things to remember:
- ALWAYS watch for and wait for pedestrians!
- The nose of your car should be BEHIND that thick white line. Don’t pull up to a stop sign and go over that line.
- Be sure to use your turn signals!
- Try your best to use these rules, but if there is an aggressive or negligent driver at the stop, they’ll probably take the lead. Just be patient, cautious and don’t get all upset. There’s plenty of things to get stressed about. Let this one slide with a smile.

Here is a link with video showing 4-way Stop: https://youtu.be/wZmy68g7u9M

The process of decision making every driver must make before continuing through a 4-way intersection.