Question I was involved in a auto accident that was ruled the other drivers fault for crossing the center line. I was seriously injured and have been racking up medical bills in excess of 100,000 so far. The insurance companies involved in the claims have a limit of 50,000 and 25,000. The person who was driving the other vehicle has nothing as far as assets to go after. What options do i have?
AnswerHi Tracy,
I'm sorry to learn of your serious injury and do wish you a full
recovery.
If the at fault party only carries bodily injury limits in the
amount of $25,000 per person/ $50,00 to all people, then the
maximum amount that you can recover from that party is $25,000.
You didn't state if you were driving your own car or were a
passenger in someone elses vehicle.
If the car that you were driving or riding in has underinsured motorists coverage, you will in MOST cases be able to collect additional amounts.
The legal wording for this coverage varies considerable from
state to state. If you carried $25,000/$50,000 UNDERINSURED
motorists on your own policy, some states will allow you to collect up to an additional $25,000 from your own company. In other
states the legal wording of the policy stipulates that you must
carry an amount of coverage that is greater than the amount of
coverage carried by the at fault driver. For example this would
mean $50,000/$100,000, $100,000/$300,000 or any greater amount.
In some states the legal wording of the policy stipulates that
you can only collect the difference between the amount carried
by the at fault driver and your limits. Example: if your
policy has limits of $100,000/$300,000 you could only collect
an additional $75,000. In other states you would be able to
collect up to the additional $100,000.
Some states allow "stacking", which means that if you have
two cars and each carry $100,000/$300,000 UNDERINSURED motorists
then there would be an additional amount available up to
$200,000. Stacking may also apply if you reside with other
people who have their own separate insurance and you are
listed as a named driver on their policy.
If you were a passenger in a friends car, that policy would
apply first and then your own policy would apply after the
friends policy was exhausted.
In ALL cases, the insurance companies require that before
accepting the policy limits payment from the other party
that you secure the permission from all of the companies that
you plan to file an UNDERINSURED motorists claim with to approve
your acceptance of the policy limits claim and request that they
open an UNDERINSURED motorists claim.
Once this has been done then they will attempt to negotiate a
settlement with you. If you are able to negotiate a fair settlement then you will have no need of an attorney. If you and the insurance company(s) are unable to reach an agreement on a settlement amount then
the legal wording of the policy stipulates one of two methods
that will be followed.
In some states, the legal wording of the policy states that you
can not sue your own insurance company and that any claim
against them must be handled by arbitration. In other states,
you are allowed to sue your company and the case will be decided
by a jury trial. In either of those situations, you will need
to retain an attorney.
Every state has a STATUE OF LIMITATIONS within which you must
settle a bodily injury claim or file a lawsuit or FOREVER lose
all rights to any payment for your injuries. In Kentucky,
Tennessee and Louisiana that statue limit is one (1) year.
The most common statue limit is two (2) years which applies
in approximately 23 states. The remainder offer limits of
Three, four or even 5 years.
In your case, the statue SHOULD only apply when dealing with
the at-fault drivers insurance company. Once you secure
permission (get it in writing) to open an underinsured
motorists claim, that stops the statue date.
Unless you live in California, I can't explain the legal wording
of your policy. You need to read your declarations page to
learn the amount of coverage that may be available and then
read the policy to see which of the above explanations apply
in your state.
You may even have to hire an attorney SOLELY to read and explain
the legal wording of your policy. The charges would be based on
his hourly rate.
I know this is a very long answer, but I have tried to cover all
possible methods of the settlement of an underinsured motorists
claim.
Please write again if you feel that I can be of more assistance.
I hope that you find this to be helpful. Your feedback by rating
my response will be appreciated.
Bennie
San Francisco Bay Area
