Hit by an uninsured driver in Los Angeles?
From time to time here on Tort Talk, I talk about one of my favorite areas of personal injury law.
The issue is uninsured motorist coverage. On most auto insurance policies, uninsured motorist coverage is lumped together with “underinsured” motorist coverage. These two forms of coverage are often referred to as “UM/UIM”.
Many people I talk to don’t understand what these coverages are. To be honest, prior to working as a Los Angeles personal injury attorney, I didn’t understand them either.
The basic rule is this: Uninsured motorist coverage is there to protect you in the event you get hit by a driver who is uninsured. It also protects you in the event you get hit by a driver who doesn’t have enough insurance.
As a personal injury lawyer, I can tell you that in my 12 years of practicing law, I’ve seen this happen countless times: A driver causes a serious collision with serious injuries and there’s either no insurance, or not enough insurance to adequately compensate those who were injured.
According to some estimates, Los Angeles County has between 20,000 to 40,000 hit-and-runs every year. The issue of uninsured motorist coverage is very real, and I see first-hand in my practice how being properly insured can be the difference between frustration and relief.
An important aspect of this coverage is also that it can cover you even if you’re not riding in your vehicle.
Uninsured motorist/Underinsured motorist protects you in the following circumstances in California:
Hit and run (provided you file a police report within 24 hours)
Pedestrian collision where the at-fault driver is uninsured or underinsured (provided there was physical contact between that driver’s car and your physical body)
Bicycle collision (same as #2).
Here’s an example from a recent case I handled:
My client, an avid bicyclist, was riding his bicycle in West Los Angeles, observing all applicable traffic laws. A driver in the adjacent lane veered into the bike lane, colliding with my client and throwing him off his bicycle. The collision was captured on surveillance, but the imaging did not capture the license plate information. The case ended up being a hit-and-run, and we proceeded against my client’s car insurance policy using his uninsured motorist coverage.
If you read these pages and follow me on social media, you know that I discuss the topic of uninsured motorist coverage a lot. That’s because I’ve seen both sides of the equation. I’ve seen drivers/pedestrians/bicyclists walk away frustrated after being injured by an uninsured or underinsured driver, and they themselves did not have adequate uninsured motorist coverage.
I’ve also seen drivers/bicyclists walk away very satisfied because they protected themselves with a healthy amount of uninsured motorist coverage in the event they got hit by someone with little-to-no insurance. My hit-and-run bicyclist client falls into the latter category. He can now focus on recovering from his serious, life-changing injuries.
If you have questions about your insurance coverage, or your uninsured motorist coverage, please feel free to reach out for a no-cost review of your policy.
If you were hit by an uninsured driver anywhere in Los Angeles, Orange County, or the San Fernando Valley, I’m available to discuss your case.
