Many folks don’t realize the importance of having high uninsured motorist limits in your car insurance policy to protect yourself and your family.
Take this example of a case I am handling right now; My client was rear-ended by a driver with a 100/300 insurance policy. My client has had to have neck surgery, lost her job with the state of Ohio due to her injuries, and might have to have a second back surgery. She has $100,000 in uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage on her own car insurance policy for which she has paid premiums for quite some time. Unfortunately, under Ohio law she will be limited to the $100,000 of insurance paid out by the person who hit her. She will not be able to recover any money under her own policy because her company gets a credit for the insurance available from the person who hit her. Under Ohio law the policies can no longer be “stacked” – she can’t avail herself of her own uninsured/underinsured motorist policy, because it’s effectively already been “used up” by the credit given to her own insurer.
Consider another example. My client, a pedestrian, is hit by a driver with $100,000 in insurance coverage. My client is badly injured, resulting in a 4 level cervical fusion, and will lose a large amount of future income as the result of the injury. He has $250,000 in uninsured motorist coverage. Under Ohio law he is limited to receiving a total of $250,000 which does not fully compensate him and his family for his injuries and loss of income, regardless of the amount of the other person’s insurance.
Please call your insurance company today and make sure your coverage limit is adequate to cover the full financial impact of a catastrophic injury. There are many people on the road with little or no insurance – you have to protect yourself! A great car accident lawyer can help to represent you and protect your rights, but we can’t rewrite insurance law.