After being involved in an accident in North Carolina, working with the other motorists’ insurance policy is oftentimes a crucial aspect of your Durham personal injury case. Even worse is if the individual does not have insurance or does not have enough insurance to cover the extent of your crash-related injuries. What do you do now? Don’t worry, there are still options.
The state of North Carolina has made changes in insurance policies to mitigate the risks associated with uninsured drivers. Previously, North Carolina motorists could elect not to add uninsured motorist coverage to their car insurance. However, in January of 2009, North Carolina mandated that all drivers carry uninsured motorist coverage as part of their car insurance policy. This added significant protection to drivers in Durham, NC.
Uninsured motorist coverage is an essential component of your own insurance policy that aids in covering bodily injury or property damage you may have received as the result of an accident with an uninsured driver in Durham, NC.
Uninsured motorist coverage can also apply to hit-and-run accidents. Under the requirement, the minimum uninsured coverage for bodily injury a driver may carry is $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident. On the other hand, the maximum the driver may carry is $1,000,000 per person and $1,000,000 per accident. In terms of property damage, the minimum uninsured coverage is $25,000 per accident.
Certain exclusions exist when it comes to North Carolina Uninsured Motorist Coverage. It is important to note that while hit-and-run accidents are applicable to uninsured motorist coverage if property damage is incurred by an unidentified motorist/vehicle, it will be excluded.
Other exclusions to North Carolina Uninsured Motorist Coverage include:
- the first $100 of property damage
- any punitive damages awarded and the accompanying legal costs
- damages that fall under worker’s compensation and/or disability benefits laws
- any damages settled directly with the uninsured motorist, without the written permission of your insurance carrier
In short, while you no longer have a say in whether or not your North Carolina insurance policy includes uninsured motorist coverage, it does provide you with a form of proactive protection.
If you are unsure about whether or not your claim is covered under uninsured motorist coverage, or have any questions pertaining to how uninsured motorist coverage works as a component of your current policy, contact your Durham Personal Injury Lawyers at Wallace Pierce Law for more information.