What Do You Do If You're Hurt By An Uninsured Motorist?
If you get injured in a car accident, you might hope that insurance will take care of everything. But what happens when the other driver doesn't have insurance? Here's what you should do.
Will Your Own Insurance Cover You?
You should let your own insurance company know about any accident. However, as a general rule, your own insurance does not reimburse you for injuries caused by other drivers. That's up to that driver's bodily injury liability coverage.
The exception is if you've purchased uninsured motorist coverage. Uninsured motorist coverage will reimburse you as if the uninsured driver did have bodily injury liability coverage. However, the claim is subject to your policy limits. In addition, like any other insurance claim, there is a chance that your insurance company will give you a hard time about paying it in full and you may need to work with a lawyer to help you to get them to pay.
What Happens to the Uninsured Driver?
Depending on where you live, the uninsured driver may receive a ticket or get arrested for driving without insurance. This punished the uninsured driver for breaking the law, but it doesn't really help you get the money you're owed.
Can You Sue the Other Driver?
If you get hurt by an uninsured driver, you're probably going to have to file a lawsuit unless you can convince them to write a check for all of your medical bills. Remember, drivers are personally liable for any damage and injuries they cause in an accident. It doesn't matter if they had insurance or not. The role of insurance is to pay these claims on the driver's behalf or to provide a legal defense in cases where the claim may not be valid. If the other driver didn't have insurance or their limits were too low, you have every right to sue them for what you need.
How Will You Get Your Money?
The tricky part about collecting from an uninsured driver is they may not have a lot of money. That's why many people go without insurance. However, they may have a car, house, or other assets. You may also be able to get a garnishment of their wages. This may seem mean, but you're only getting reimbursed for the money they took from you by driving in a way that caused an accident. Your attorney can help you through this process.
To learn more about what to do, contact a local personal injury attorney today.