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What if I’m Injured in a Car Accident Caused by an Uninsured Driver?

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In this video, Personal Injury Attorney Ben Schwartz talks about uninsured drivers and what you should do if you are injured in a car accident.

Hey Folks, I’m Ben Schwartz,

Today I’m going to answer a viewer question from Alonzo in Chichester, Pennsylvania. Alonzo wrote in he said, “what would happen if you were in an accident, and you find out that the driver that caused the accident didn’t have any insurance?” I just want to say, Alonzo, thank you so much for writing in with this question. It’s a great question. It’s a situation that happens constantly.

Folks constantly get injured in car accidents due to the fault of some negligent or careless motorist and then later come to find out that that negligent careless motorist had no insurance. It’s very common and I think that if you are the type of person that is careless and cause an accident, you’re also going to be the type of person that’s careless and don’t pay for your insurance premium. And so we see this scenario happen all the time.

The direct answer is, you look to your own auto insurance for what’s called uninsured motorist coverage.

So, the concept is if you are injured in an accident, let’s say that we are driving along are going to lunch we stop at a red light, and WHAM another driver runs into the back of us because he was not paying attention. We later find out that the other driver had no insurance. Instead of suing that other driver, we look to our own insurance policy to see if we had uninsured motorist coverage. The uninsured motorist coverage pays us what we would have gotten in the settlement or award for our personal injury claim against the at-fault driver had that driver been appropriately insured.

So this raises the topic of, do you have uninsured motorist coverage? And if so, how much-uninsured motorist coverage do you have?

If you are watching this video, you should think about this… What is the percentage of people that are driving around that have no insurance whatsoever? And if they cause a crash and they injure you on the roadway, what are you going to do?  You are going to go to an attorney.

The attorney is going to find out the at-fault driver had no insurance. The attorney is going to say, ‘we will contact your insurance company and hopefully, you had UM or uninsured motorist coverage on your policy, and hopefully, you had adequate uninsured motorist coverage. Just because you have the coverage doesn’t mean you have enough to pay you a fair settlement.

So now is a great time before you get in that crash caused by a negligent driver, who didn’t pay their premium, now is a great time to look at your insurance policy and see how much UM coverage you have. Call your insurance agent, if you have an insurance agent. Call the direct 800 number or the toll-free number for your insurance company if you don’t have an agent and find out, do I have UM coverage and how much do I have?

Make sure that you max it out to the maximum extent possible given your ability to cover that premium and given your financial wherewithal. You have got to maintain the coverage and it’s got to be a reasonable amount of coverage because there are so many people that have no insurance and those uninsured drivers are out driving around smashing into people and causing injuries.

Folks, I’m attorney Ben Schwartz, this is a great question. I think it is a good piece of information for me to put out into the internet universe. It’s something that I hope you learned something new today. I hope it’s something that you found interesting. If you have a topic like this about personal injury litigation or car accidents, or anything that you think would make a good video, send me an email, ben.schwartz@schwartzandschwartz.com. I would love to hear from you. I would love to see if we can collaborate, if you can give me a good idea for a video and I will be sure to mention you in my recording.

Thanks for watching!

Hit and Run Lawyers in Dover, DE, Fighting for Justice Even With Unknown Liable Parties

Over 9 billion miles are driven on Delaware roadways in a given year. This is quite the statistic, but it partially clears up why there are around 30,000 motor vehicle crashes in the state annually. Any collision is problematic in its own right, but when an at-fault driver flees the scene, the issues involved can become even more complex. If you’ve been involved in such an accident, contacting hit-and-run lawyers in Dover, DE may be your best approach.

At Schwartz & Schwartz, Attorneys at Law, we’ve seen the devastating statistics of Delaware car accidents. It’s difficult enough to obtain fair compensation when a liable party is known, but when their identity is a mystery, you could end up facing off against your own insurance company. Regardless of the underlying circumstances of your accident, though, our Delaware Personal Injury Attorneys can help you better understand your rights and how to move forward.

How Can Victims Receive Compensation for Hit and Runs?

When a hit-and-run accident occurs, many people wonder how the other driver can be held accountable. Unfortunately, they often can’t. There’s a chance that the driver could be tracked down — this is one task that a hit-and-run lawyer in Dover may be able to help with — but there’s no guarantee that the criminal will ever be identified. Fortunately, this doesn’t mean you’re not entitled to compensation.

In Delaware, the Personal Injury Protection (PIP) requirement in your insurance policy could cover lost wages and medical expenses while your collision insurance pays for any property damage. Unfortunately, this is often when accident victims discover that their insurance company is not on their side. Every dollar an insurer pays out is a dollar that doesn’t go to their profits. In addition, the Uninsured Motorist coverage under your own auto insurance policy may provide compensation for your pain and suffering and other losses that would have been paid by the at-fault driver’s insurance company if the at-fault driver had been identified.

You might quickly discover that insurance adjusters will try to make you take responsibility — or in a best-case scenario, they may simply offer you a settlement that’s wholly inadequate. This is why you need a personal injury attorney who can advocate for your rights through the process.

How Common Are Hit and Run Accidents?

Unfortunately, many accidents throughout America end with responsible parties fleeing the scene. The most recent data available tells us that fatal hit-and-run accidents hit their highest point ever in 2016. Unfortunately, this may not be the ceiling on such collisions. Fatal accidents where a driver fled the scene have increased by over 40% during the last decade. This is particularly unnerving since there were recently more fatal Delaware crashes than at any point in the last 15 years.

It’s a shame that Dover hit-and-run accident attorneys are necessary, but that’s simply the reality that we live in. Statistics show that these accidents are hitting new highs, and even though Delaware has criminal sanctions for those who flee collision scenes, these rates don’t seem to be dropping. You may face an uphill battle after a hit-and-run accident, but with a personal injury lawyer in Dover, DE on your side, you won’t face that battle alone.

What Should Victims Do After a Hit and Run Collision?

What you do after a Delaware hit-and-run accident can have serious ramifications on your ability to recover compensation. This is particularly the case in collisions where the other vehicle didn’t make physical contact with your automobile. For instance, an insurance company may not believe that your wreck into a tree was caused by someone driving you off the road. No matter what situation you find yourself in, however, you should always follow these steps:

  • Contact the police: There’s often disagreement over whether police should be contacted after an accident — mainly when there are no serious injuries. Regardless of the severity of your accident, though, you should always contact authorities in a hit-and-run collision. You’re the victim of a crime, and recovering compensation is unlikely without a police report.
  • Take photos of the damage: You want to document everything about your accident in as much detail as possible. This means you should take pictures of any damage to your property along with the accident scene itself. This can help a Dover hit-and-run attorney figure out how much you’re entitled to and prove your case.
  • Get witness information: Witnesses can be invaluable following a hit-and-run accident. If the perpetrator is found later, eyewitness testimony can ensure they’re held accountable. Witnesses can also back up the claim that you were in fact a victim of a driver who fled the scene.
  • Seek medical attention: Even if you don’t feel you sustained serious or catastrophic injuries, you should visit a medical professional. Some injuries have delayed symptoms, and you don’t want an insurance company trying to claim that your accident injuries were sustained sometime after the collision.
  • Notify your insurance company: You’ll need to let your insurer know what happened if you intend to file a claim. However, you may benefit from speaking with a hit-and-run lawyer in Dover prior to contacting the insurance company. A legal professional can help you better understand your rights.

Your ability to take all these steps could vary depending on the severity of your injuries. For instance, those involved in pedestrian accidents may find it difficult to do anything other than wait for emergency medical personnel. Just because you’re unable to take all these actions, though, does not mean you’ve surrendered any of your rights. If a negligent driver flees the scene of your accident, contact our Dover personal injury law firm today for help navigating this difficult time.

Contact a Hit and Run Lawyer in Dover, DE Today

Any motor vehicle collision can result in undue burdens, but a hit-and-run accident is particularly disheartening. In addition to dealing with lost wages, serious injuries, medical expenses, emotional distress, and other damages, you sometimes have to face them not knowing who is to blame. Even the sense that someone could have such a lack of basic human decency is enough to break a person’s heart. Fortunately, you don’t have to shoulder these burdens on your own.

At Schwartz & Schwartz, Attorneys at Law, our team of personal injury lawyers has spent years advocating for the rights of hit-and-run victims and others who suffer damages due to negligence. No one should have to face financial difficulties due to the negligent acts of reckless drivers — even in cases where that driver is unknown. Contact us today by calling (302) 678-8700 with hit-and-run lawyers in Dover, DE. We’ll work tirelessly to get you justice.