Learn about the potential insurance recovery sources that may exist after a car accident
In California, all drivers are required to carry insurance to help pay for any injuries or property damage that might occur in the event of an accident. However, you don’t necessarily want to just file a claim with your own insurance company if you have been hurt in a car accident. Why not? Because there may in fact be additional insurance recovery sources for your car accident injury claim.
Here are some of the potential insurance recovery sources:
Your Car Insurance: Regardless of whether or not the accident was your fault, you can file a claim under your own car insurance.
The At-Fault Driver’s Car Insurance: If your accident was caused by another driver, their insurance should cover your damages.
The Car Owner’s Insurance: If the driver who caused your accident was driving someone else’s vehicle, you may be able to recover from that person’s insurance. In general, the vehicle owner’s policy follows the vehicle and will cover damages caused by anyone with permission to operate the vehicle.
Underinsured Driver Insurance: California law only requires drivers to carry $15,000 in coverage for injuries or death to one person and $30,000 for injuries or death to more than one person, plus $5,000 for property damage. Considering how severe car accident injuries can be, your medical costs may easily exceed this minimum coverage. In this case, you may be able to recover from your own underinsured driver insurance—assuming you purchased this coverage with your policy.
Uninsured Driver Insurance: If the driver who caused your accident didn’t have any insurance at all, you could turn to your own uninsured driver insurance. Again, you would have had to purchase this coverage with your car insurance policy in order to take advantage of it.
Med Pay Coverage: Med Pay is another type of supplemental insurance that you can select on your own car insurance policy. If you have purchased this type of coverage, it will cover any injuries that you or your passengers suffer in a car accident, regardless of who was at fault.
Employer Coverage: If you have been injured by someone who was driving as part of their work, their employer should be liable for the accident. This means you will be recovering damages from the employer’s insurance policy.
Do You Need Help With a Claim?
If you have been injured in a car accident that was not your fault, you may need help analyzing the facts of the case, figuring out which insurance coverage will apply, and making your claim. At The Law Offices of Larry H. Parker, we can provide this help. As your car accident injury attorney, we will fight aggressively to help you maximize your compensation. Get started today by calling 800-333-0000 for a free initial consultation with a car accident injury attorney.
