Legal Question in Insurance Law in North Carolina

who pays damages when no collision insurance is carried

if you loan you car to someone to drive and there is an accident and no collision insurance is carried on the vehicle who is responsible for the damages. Can the person whose vehicle was damaged sue the person who was driving for payment of the damages?


Asked on 1/07/01, 10:46 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Charles Aspinwall Charles S. Aspinwall, J.D., LLC

Re: who pays damages when no collision insurance is carried

Recovery of the loss in a case such as this is governed by negligence or "Tort" law. This means the person responsible for the collision ["accident"] must pay. So the first answer to your question is the person responsible for the collision is responsible to you for the damages or loss to your vehicle.

Often times both drivers are at fault in a collision, then both are responsible to the extent of their individual negligence. If they are both equally at fault, then each owes 50%. A bit more complicated.

Many times cases such as this can be resolved in small claims court without the necessity of lawyers. It depends upon the amount {money} asked for.

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Answered on 1/11/01, 10:38 am
Steven Murray Steven W. Murray, APC

Re: who pays damages when no collision insurance is carried

The person who caused the damages is responsible. He

or she may have their own liability insurance,

which means they are insured for the damages they

caused to your vehicle. They may also be insured

under your own liability part of your policy, since

most states require insurers to cover "permissive

users" of an auto. Check the exclusions, however,

since the same residency, relationships, or other

variables may exclude this kind of a property

damage claim.

Small claims may be your best alternative if there

is no insurance available to the driver.

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Answered on 1/11/01, 3:55 pm


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