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When you head out in your car, you don’t expect to be involved in a car accident. After a crash, you may be even more surprised to learn that the other driver doesn’t have insurance or only has the minimum coverage required by the state. What happens when you are hurt in an accident, and the other driver is either uninsured or doesn’t have enough insurance to pay for your losses?

In these scenarios, your own insurance may pay for your losses through your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage. While only uninsured motorist coverage is required in South Carolina, both types of coverage are critical when it comes to protecting you financially after an accident. Our Simpsonville personal injury attorneys will work with you to get you the money that you deserve for your injuries.

Brooks Derrick Accident and Injury Lawyers fight for the rights of injury victims who have been hurt in all types of South Carolina accidents. We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that you will never pay a fee unless we recover money for you. Reach out to our law firm to schedule a free consultation with a South Carolina car accident lawyer.

What Is Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage?

In South Carolina, all drivers are required to carry two types of car insurance: liability and uninsured motorist (UM) coverage. You cannot register a vehicle or legally drive in the state unless you have the state minimum car insurance.

Car insurance policies in South Carolina must contain three parts: 

1. Bodily injury liability, which covers claims from other people for their injuries in accidents that you cause. Bodily injury claims cover things like medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering. In South Carolina, all drivers must have a minimum of $25,000 per person for bodily injury and $50,000 for all persons injured in one accident.
2. Property damage liability pays for any damage that you may cause to others’ property, such as vehicle damage and damage to physical property. All drivers in South Carolina must have at least $25,000 in property damage liability.
3. Uninsured motorist coverage pays the policyholder if they are injured or their property is damaged by a hit-and-run driver or a driver without insurance. South Carolina law requires all drivers to carry uninsured motorist coverage that is equal to minimum liability coverage ($25,000/$50,0000/$25,000).

These requirements are the lowest amount of insurance that you can have. Many drivers choose to add higher levels of liability and uninsured motorist coverage. They may also add other coverage to their policy.

This typically includes underinsured motorist coverage, which pays for your injuries or property damage if the driver who caused your accident does not have enough insurance to cover your losses. Auto insurers must offer uninsured motorist coverage in South Carolina, but there is no requirement to purchase it. As personal injury attorneys, we generally recommend that drivers purchase this type of coverage when buying car insurance.

Many drivers also choose to purchase insurance to pay for physical damage to their car, such as collision coverage and comprehensive coverage. Collision coverage pays for damage to your car that happens when it collides with something else. Comprehensive coverage pays for damage to your vehicle from other causes, such as flooding, theft, or broken glass. This type of coverage isn’t required by law, but if you have a car loan, your lender may require it.

Uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage can play an important role if you are involved in an accident with a driver who doesn’t have insurance, flees the scene, or doesn’t have enough insurance to pay for your losses. Given South Carolina’s relatively low insurance minimums, having both uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage can make a huge difference.

For example, consider a situation where you are involved in a t-bone accident after another driver ran a red light. You suffer serious injuries and undergo multiple surgeries. Your medical bills and lost wages surpass $100,000 in the first few months. Your car was totaled.

If the at-fault driver didn’t have car insurance or only had the state minimum of 25/50/25, you may find yourself in a dire financial situation. As explained below, UM/UIM coverage can fill the gap in this situation, providing you with the money that you need to recover and move forward with your life. Our South Carolina car accident lawyers can help you get the money that you deserve through claims against the at-fault driver and your own insurance company.

How Does UM/UIM Coverage Work After a South Carolina Car Accident?

Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage acts as a sort of back-up in case you’re in an accident with a driver who either doesn’t have insurance or who doesn’t have enough insurance to pay for your losses. This includes situations where the at-fault driver can’t be identified, such as after a hit-and-run accident.

There are many situations where UM/UIM coverage comes into play. Consider a case where John rear-ends Kara while she is stopped at a red light in Simpsonville. Kara suffers a spine injury and a broken wrist in the collision. 

Her medical bills total $50,000, and she misses 6 weeks of work, which equals $15,000 in wages. In addition, the cost to repair Kara’s car is $10,000. Altogether, without considering pain and suffering, Kara’s total economic damages are $75,000.

If John has the state minimum 25/50/25 coverage, then the maximum that his insurance will pay for Kara’s injuries from the accident is $25,000. While his insurance will cover her property damage, it won’t pay for her full lost wages and medical bills or any pain and suffering. 

In this scenario, Kara can file a claim with her own insurance company to collect up to the policy limits of her underinsured motorist coverage. If Kara has the state minimum 25/50/25 coverage, she can collect $25,000 for her bodily injuries and lost wages. If she has a higher limit, then she can collect additional money for her losses.

Similarly, if John does not have car insurance, Kara can file a claim for uninsured motorist coverage. She can collect up to her policy limits to cover her losses. Having uninsured motorist coverage is particularly important because there is a strong likelihood that an uninsured driver like John may not have assets to go after in a lawsuit. 

Our law firm can help you file a claim with your own insurance company for UM/UIM coverage. While in theory, these claims should be paid out quickly to policyholders, the reality is that insurance companies often fight UM/UIM claims. 

Remember: insurance companies, even your own, are in business to make money. The insurer’s interest is in paying out as little as possible on claims, even when you have a valid claim against your policy. Even if it is your own insurance company, there is no guarantee that your claim will be paid quickly and in full.

The best way to get the money that you deserve for your losses related to a car accident is by working with an experienced South Carolina car accident attorney. Our team will fight to get you every penny that you are entitled to under the law, whether it is from the at-fault driver’s insurer or your own insurance company. We will also explore the possibility of filing a lawsuit against a third party who may be responsible for your injuries.

Hurt in an Accident with an Uninsured Driver? Give Us a Call.

Although all drivers in South Carolina are required to carry car insurance, uninsured and underinsured drivers are unfortunately a fact of life. The best way to protect yourself is by carrying UM/UIM coverage as part of your policy. If you are involved in an accident with an uninsured or underinsured driver, our law firm will work hard to get you the money that you deserve.

At Brooks Derrick Accident and Injury Lawyers, we thoroughly investigate each car accident claim to help our clients get full compensation for their injuries. We won’t back down from a fight and won’t hesitate to take on the big insurance companies to get you the money that you are entitled to under South Carolina law. Give us a call at 864-531-7765 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free initial consultation with a Simpsonville car accident lawyer.