PERSONAL INJURY LAW
UNINSURED MOTORIST COVERAGE-
WHY YOU NEED IT
BY CINDY A. GOLDSTEIN, ESQUIRE
CINDY A. GOLDSTEIN, P.A.
As a personal injury attorney, my job is not only to obtain maximum compensation for my client's injuries and other damages such as medical expenses, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, and if you have suffered a permanent injury, pain and suffering. I also review my client's insurance policies and advise them as to any additions they should make to their policy to protect them should they unfortunately get into another motor vehicle accident. The most common coverage that I encourage my client to add is Uninsured Motorist Coverage. I can tell you that most of my clients do not know what that is.
Florida law only requires that its drivers carry two types of coverage on their automobile policy if they own a motor vehicle: (1) PIP (personal injury protection benefits also referred to as no-fault benefits) and (2) property damage coverage to pay for any property damage that may be caused to your car by the at-fault driver. Florida law does not require drivers to carry bodily injury insurance coverage to pay for bodily injury to others. The reality is that many drivers do not carry any insurance at all. As a result, we take a risk every time we operate an automobile in the State of Florida that we will be injured in an accident by a person who does not have maintain bodily injury coverage to cover our damages. To cover that risk, drivers need to elect to take uninsured motorist (UM) coverage on their policies.
Uninsured Motorist Coverage (UM) is additional coverage you can elect to purchase from your own insurance company. Uninsured Motorist coverage covers bodily injuries to you and your passengers in three difference scenarios: (1) when the at-fault driver has no bodily injury insurance on his/or automobile insurance policy; (2) when the at-fault driver does not maintain enough bodily injury insurance to compensate you for the injuries and other damages you sustained; (3) when the at-fault driver leaves from the scene of the accident, and his identity is unknown. We also refer to this vehicle as a "phantom vehicle."
Your UM coverage in Florida can be stacked. This means that the limits of your policy can be multiplied by the number of cars that are insured on your policy. For example, if you have $100,000.00 per person in UM coverage and you insured three cars on that policy on the date of an accident, you should have a total limit of $300,000.00 per person available in UM coverage.
I currently represent a client who was in a very bad accident. She suffers from neck and back pain on a daily basis. Her treating neurosurgeon has recommended surgery to her neck. My client wants to have this surgery as she can no longer deal with her pain as is. However, the at- fault party has $100,000.00 in bodily injury coverage but my client did not maintain UM coverage. Her medical bills for the surgery alone will exceed $100,000.00. What is she to do?
How about the client I had who was hit by a vehicle who fled the scene of the accident? The identity of the driver who fled the scene is unknown. My client called the tag into 911 as he asked for police to quickly come to his aid. However, the tag cannot be traced to any vehicle. My client was badly injured but did not maintain uninsured motorist coverage. Had he done so, his own insurance company would be stepping into the shoes of the at-fault party's insurance company to compensate him for his bodily injuries and other damages.
The Insurance Research Council (IRC) is a division of the American Institute for CPCU and the Insurance Institute of America. The Institutes are independent, not-for-profit organizations dedicated to providing educational programs, professional certification, and research for the property-casualty insurance business. According to a recent study from the Insurance Research Council (IRC), Uninsured Motorists, 2008 Edition, approximately one in six drivers across the United States may be driving uninsured by 2010.[i] Although the estimated percentage of uninsured motorists decreased nationally, from 14.9 percent in 2003 to 13.8 percent in 2007, the recent economic downturn is expected to trigger a sharp rise in the uninsured motorist rate. According to the study, Florida is in the top five states with the highest uninsured driver estimates at a staggering 23%! And according to this study, as unemployment rises, so will the number of drivers who do not maintain uninsured motorist coverage.
Let's face it folks, with the present state of the economy, unemployment is increasing. As unemployment numbers rise, people are trying to save money however they feasibly can. Financially troubled drivers are letting their auto policies lapse, or canceling or reducing auto insurance coverage in a desperate attempt to save money. This means there are more uninsured motorists on the road.
Most of my clients do not understand the need and importance of maintaining UM coverage until after they are injured in an accident. Keep in mind, every case is different. Should you wish to discuss your particular matter further, please contact a personal injury attorney directly to discuss your rights. Spending just a little more money to get UM coverage (which is relatively inexpensive) can save you thousands in damages later.