NYC UNINSURED MOTORISTS ATTORNEY
INTRODUCTION TO UNINSURED MOTORISTS PROTECTION
In New York State if you are involved in a automobile accident you are entitled to personal injury protection (PIP) regardless of who may be at fault due to the state’s No-Fault law. In instances when another individual’s negligence was the cause of the accident you can make a bodily injury claim through the at-fault vehicle’s insurance to be compensated for your liability claim. There are times, however, when one may be struck by an individual with insufficient coverage. Read on to see the options available to you if ever faced with this scenario.
UNINSURED COVERAGE (UM)
All drivers in New York State are required to purchase liability insurance that meet the following standards:
- Bodily Injury minimum: Minimum $25,000 per person / $50,000 per accident
- Property Damage minimum: Minimum $10,000 (does not apply to your own vehicle)
- Uninsured/Underinsured Bodily Injury minimum: Minimum $25,000 per person / $50,000 per accident (cannot exceed your BI liability limits)
- Basic Personal Injury Protection minimum: Minimum $50,000
Despite these requirements there are about 5.3% of drivers in New York who operate their vehicles without insurance. Though this places NY as 3rd lowest state (behind Massachusetts and Maine) with uninsured motorists, this still means that there are thousands of drivers out there with inadequate coverage.
The UM coverage helps you if you do not have access to an adverse vehicle’s liability insurance due to an accident caused by:
- Unidentified hit and run driver
- Uninsured out-of-state motor vehicle
- Uninsured NY motor vehicle
- Stolen motor vehicle
- Motor vehicle operated without the consent of the owner
- Unregistered motor vehicle
The Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corporation (MVAIC) while also providing protection in accidents involving uninsured motorists, only steps in as the last resort.
UNDERINSURED COVERAGE (UIM)
Unlike uninsured motorist BI coverage, underinsured motorist coverage (UIM) is not required by New York State. It provides coverage if the at-fault driver in an accident has insufficient liability coverage to fully compensate you.
In both UM and UIM cases a claim has to be filed against your own insurance to process bodily injury claims. UIM claims come into effect after the at-fault driver’s liability has been exhausted. If you find yourself seriously injured by an underinsured motorist, you may have a UIM claim if the injuries you sustain surpass the limits of the negligent driver’s policy.
SEEK A NYC UNINSURED MOTORISTS ATTORNEY WITH EXPERIENCE
Although most insurance companies will acknowledge and honor the UM/UIM provisions of your policy, there are some who may try to reject your UM/UIM claim or offer you very little compensation. It is thus very important to reach out to a personal injury attorney as soon as possible. At Wittenstein & Wittenstein we can help investigate your claim and ensure that you receive fair recovery. We have over 60 years of experience with settling cases involving uninsured and underinsured motorists in New York. Call NYC Uninsured Motorist Attorney today to schedule a free consultation.
NYC UNINSURED MOTORISTS ATTORNEY
How to Choose an Attorney
There are right ways and wrong ways to do just about anything. If you’ve been seriously injured and lost time from work, making the right choice can be the difference between just getting by and living well, for the rest of your life. The wrong way is to accept a card from a “therapy place” from a seedy looking person haunting the scene of your accident. It’s pretty unlikely that any high quality medical practice would employ somebody [...]
Why Is Every Lawyer Rejecting My Case?
You had a car accident and you’ve called every Queens car accident attorney, every Brooklyn car accident attorney and every attorney in Manhattan, The Bronx and Staten Island and they’ve all told you to get lost. You don’t understand - you were injured, and it wasn’t your fault, so you’re wondering, “Why is every lawyer rejecting my case.?” Accident attorneys work on a contingency fee, meaning that they only get paid if they are successful. They don’t want [...]
Why Do I Need to Sign HIPPA’s After a Truck Accident?
Truck accidents are no less than a nightmare! Insurance companies take advantage of your distress, by calling you up right after the accident, trying to get you to settle for much less than the case is worth. Shortly after a truck accident, you may have very little pain, so you go home from the scene of the accident, hoping it’s nothing serious. When the pain doesn’t go away, you seek medical treatment and legal assistance. Accident attorneys in Queens [...]
Brooklyn Has the Most Accidents in New York City
Insurance companies are cracking down on “rate jumpers,” raising awareness about where accidents in the City are more common. According to Nerd Wallet, Kings County (Brooklyn) has the highest rates in New York City overall, with an average annual car insurance rate of $3,550.47. The next highest insurance and accident rates are The Bronx, Queens, Staten Island and Manhattan. That’s why is so important for New Yorker’s to know both how to avoid accidents and what to do [...]
What To Expect From a Personal Injury Attorney
Everybody knows that personal injury attorneys collect money for accident victims. Beyond that, it’s not always so clear how much they charge and what services they can be expected to provide. Most personal injury attorneys take cases on contingency, meaning that you don’t pay anything until the case is settled or tried, and then only if the attorney is successful, but there are variations and loopholes that you should be aware of that are not always in the [...]
Vaccination Laws Upheld Despite Religious Objections
In the United States, the First Amendment of the Constitution protects our right to practice the religion of our choice. The State and City of New York have passed laws that offer increased protection from interference with religious practice and discrimination based on religion. Just like the right to move your fist ends at the tip of another person’s nose, the government will limit the right to a religious practice that they believe endangers the community as a [...]