Imagine you are driving down Route 7 when another car approaches your vehicle and attempts to pass you in the lefthand lane. You get more and more nervous as the other vehicle drifts into your lane and there is nowhere you can go. Suddenly and without warning, the other vehicle collides with your car and you are in shock. Both cars pull over, the police and emergency medical services are called, and you exchange insurance information with the other driver. As you wait for help, the other driver makes a comment about only having the minimum amount of insurance coverage. You begin to panic and wonder how your medical treatment will be paid for if he only has the minimum amount of insurance. What do you do when you have an accident with an uninsured/underinsured motorist?
Even if the at-fault driver has the minimum amount of motor vehicle insurance allowed by law, there is still hope. In Connecticut, your personal motor vehicle insurance policy may cover damage to your vehicle and will cover your injuries even if caused by another person. This type of coverage is called uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage covers bodily injury to you, your relatives who live with you, and your passengers if they are injured in an accident caused by an uninsured motorist. This coverage protects individuals who are harmed by hit-and-run drivers. An underinsured motorist is a motorist whose bodily injury liability limits are less than your uninsured/underinsured motorist limits and insufficient to compensate you for your injuries.
What is my potential recovery from my uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage?
It is only possible to recover through your underinsured motorist coverage if your coverage exceeds the coverage provided by the person found at fault for the accident. For example, imagine that you have underinsured motorist coverage in the amount of $300,000 and you sustained $250,000 in personal injuries caused by the at-fault driver. If the individual found at fault for the accident had $25,000 in coverage and you received a settlement of $25,000 from that individual’s insurance carrier, you could initiate a civil action against your own insurance carrier for the amount of your damages that exceeded $25,000. In this situation, you would be able to be appropriately compensated for your injuries despite the fact that the at-fault driver only had minimal liability coverage. The fact that you put in a claim against your carrier will not raise your rates, as rates are only raised against the driver found at-fault for the collision.
The best practice to protect yourself from uninsured/underinsured motorists is to carry adequate insurance for yourself and your family. Carrying the bare minimum insurance on your vehicle is a recipe for disaster when an accident occurs and will impact whether you can file an uninsured/underinsured motorist claim. Please be sure to protect yourself and your loved ones by carrying adequate insurance coverage.
In order for you to preserve your uninsured/underinsured motorist claim, you should consult with an attorney with automobile accident experience as soon as possible to protect your rights. Don’t negotiate with the insurance adjuster alone, hire an experienced personal injury attorney to fight for fair compensation for your injuries.
The personal injury attorneys at Guendelsberger Law Offices have the necessary knowledge and experience to successfully litigate uninsured and underinsured motorist claims and have done so for decades. Use the form to the right (below on mobile phones) to schedule a no-fee, no-commitment consultation.