Automobile safety mechanisms are getting more advanced by the day. However ,the same cannot be said about driving skills. Most accidents occur due to lack of control or rash driving. Car collisions can have minor or deadly consequences. In either case the victim stands to receive due compensation from the perpetrator.
The at-fault driver stands to pay for the damages and injuries resulting from the crash. The problems however arise because the at-fault driver and his insurance company rarely agree to pay the rightful amount to the victim. Besides jail time and other penalties, it is required that the at-fault driver compensate for the personal injury and vehicle damages.
This post will help you understand the nuances and complexities of a car accident injury case and how to navigate it properly.
Find Out if the Driver Has Insurance
When the police get involved, they find out if any of the drivers are uninsured. They also go on to gather the driver’s license, car registration number, and insurance information from each driver. At times, the car registration form contains the driver’s insurance information.
In that case it becomes easy for you to know if the driver at fault has insurance coverage or not. But if police action is not involved, and the driver’s registration form does not carry the relevant information, and the guilty driver refuses to divulge any information, then it is a problem for you.
If that happens, you will need to involve the police and take as much information you can about the driver. It is not unheard of that the guilty driver may flee the situation. For such circumstances you should stay prepared, and try to note down as much information as you can of the other car and driver. If you are heavily injured, but not unconscious, try to jot down the car’s license plate. You will be able to help the police in its investigation, and in finding out if the driver had an insurance carrier, and who it is.
What Is Liability Insurance Coverage?
When you make a car accident injury negligence claim against the driver at fault, and he has standard car insurance, you can receive compensation up to the coverage limits of the guilty driver’s policy. When your claim exceeds the coverage policy, the driver’s insurer will pay you only till the coverage limit and not beyond that. However, it must be understood that securing that much payment from the driver’s insurer will also be a difficult feat and a rigorous legal battle.
What to Do in case of Insufficient Insurance Coverage
Make your underinsured motorist claim on your own auto policy immediately, as soon as you know that the at-fault driver’s insurance coverage has insufficient funds.
Underinsured motorist coverage is designed to meet the expenses and pay the medical bills that the at-fault driver’s insurance policy will not cover. You will need to make an underinsured motorist claim on your own policy.
This however will take time. You will first discover the limits of the at-fault driver’s coverage. After that you will need to assess your claim amount and whether the policy will be able to meet it or not.
These claims cannot be evaluated in a hurry as it will take time to determine how much medical expenses you will need, how many pay-days at work you will miss and what other accident caused costs you will need to incur to get life back on track.
Once you arrive at a somewhat concrete amount, file for an underinsured motorist claim without delay.
What Happens When the At-Fault Driver Has No Insurance?
Like underinsured motorist coverage, you need to file for uninsured motorist coverage as soon as you can on your own automobile policy. Such a claim needs to be made when the driver at fault has no car liability insurance coverage. You can obviously carry out legal action against this individual, but first you need to file your uninsured motorist claim.
Do this without delay so that you receive your medical bills and property damage expenses. When you realize you need to make an uninsured or underinsured claim, inform your policy holder immediately. Your insurer will also have to undergo many processes before sanctioning your claim.
Problems of Uninsured and Underinsured Insurance Coverage
There are stringent limits on the amount of coverage that insurance carriers will permit. Insurers obviously do not want car owners to deliberately buy cheap insurance for their own liability and then drain them out.
The uninsured and underinsured driver coverage that you apply for cannot exceed the amount of general liability coverage that you have. So, if your general liability limit is $80,000, you cannot purchase uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage for more than that amount. Insurance companies are not there to be fooled and they won’t let claimants take advantage of them.
Bad Faith Cases
The reason people are losing trust in insurance carriers, is because of the rising numbers of bad faith cases that are happening. When you make an uninsured or underinsured motorists claim, few insurance carriers conduct an investigation on you, scrutinizing your medical treatment and execution of various other aspects of life post accident. The case becomes complicated when they violate their duty and refuse to handle your case in good faith, denying your claim and even producing fake medical documents and rest to hinder your legitimate patients. It is also possible that the at-fault driver’s insurance carrier also executes similar bad faith practices to delay or deny your legitimate payment.
Finally, How to Deal With Bad Faith Insurance Cases
If you face such an incident, opt for legal help to receive your legitimate compensation. Missing pay days, medical treatment, mental turmoil and trauma are consequences of the accident and the law of the state affirms that you must receive due compensation. An expert personal injury or bad faith insurance lawyer can fight for your rights and secure you due justice.
Author Bio:
Jenniffer Pickard is a freelance content writer, who has specialized in creating unique and high-quality content. Currently, she is focusing on the law industry and has been writing for an experienced Chicago personal injury lawyer, Jonathan Rosenfeld, who is the founder of Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers. He is an expert attorney with nationwide presence and represents individuals seriously injured or killed due to the negligence of others.