Protecting People Injured by Uninsured Motorists

Tremont Sheldon P.C. reminds and educates our clients about the importance of having appropriate auto insurance coverage. We see many clients who are left unprotected with inadequate insurance, so we would like to share with you tips for selecting the best auto insurance protection for your family.

Understand your policy

Know your amount of bodily injury/liability (BI) coverage as well as the amount of your uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage. Also, try to obtain conversion coverage or double UM. Umbrella, excess, and BI coverage protect you if you cause an accident, but they afford no protection if an uninsured or underinsured motorist injures you. The only way to protect yourself is to increase your UM/UIM coverage and request double coverage. Example: If you have $300,000 BI and $300,000 UM, request double UM coverage and increase your UM limits to $600,000.

Also be sure to purchase underinsured motorist conversion (UIMC) coverage.  UIMC coverage guarantees that you and your family will be afforded the full extent of the coverage you purchased, no matter how much is recovered from the driver who caused the collision. Otherwise, the amount that you receive from the other driver will be deducted from your coverage. Example: At-fault driver pays out to injured person his $20,000 limited policy. Injured person has limited $50,000 without conversion. Injured person can only make claim for remaining $30,000 in coverage (50,000-20,000 = 30,000). With conversion coverage, injured person can make a claim for $50,000. If the injured person had double UM, he will have $100,000 of coverage in addition to the $20,000 received.

Don’t be cheap – be smart

Although the law only requires limits of $20,000 worth of coverage per person and $40,000 worth of coverage per accident, such limits are often insufficient to cover the costs resulting from serious injury. Remember to purchase the maximum amount of insurance that you can afford as it is money well spent. Also, always reject any offer to reduce your UM/UIM coverage to below the amount of your BI coverage.  And, finally, while the law no longer requires you to purchase no fault or medical benefit coverage, you should still purchase this optional coverage if you do not have health insurance coverage in order to protect yourself. Don’t think “It won’t happen to me.” Unfortunately, Tremont Sheldon P.C. has seen many situations where clients have been injured by uninsured or underinsured drivers and these clients have had inadequate UM/UIM coverage. Hopefully, you will never need it, but be smart and protect yourself.

We Are Here to Help. Contact Our Firm Today.

Do not lose hope just because the person who hit you does not have insurance coverage. Call 203-212-9075 or contact us online to discuss your case and learn more about how we fight for families in Bridgeport and across Connecticut.