Uninsured motorist clause

An 'Uninsured Motorist Clause' is a provision commonly found in United States automobile insurance policies that provides for a driver to receive damages for any injury they receive from an uninsured, negligent driver. The owner of the policy pays a premium to the insurance company to include this clause. In the event of a qualifying accident, the insurance company pays the difference between what the uninsured driver can pay and what the injured driver is entitled to.

It is mandatory to have this sort of insurance in some States, such as Illinois, Maryland, and New York.

Who is an uninsured motorist for the purpose of an uninsured motorist clause?

The first category of persons who may trigger an uninsured motorist provision consists of individuals who do not have liability coverage for the vehicle he or she is operating. In most states, it is a crime to be uninsured in this manner.

The next category consists of hit and run (vehicular) drivers. When an individual flees the scene of an accident without leaving sufficient information to identify his or herself, the individual is considered uninsured for the purposes of an uninsured motorist provision. Note, however, that a positive ID of the license plates in a hit and run accident will often be considered by insurance companies sufficient information to identify the negligent hit and run driver. Such identification will often lead to the denial of an uninsured motorist claim, as insurance companies will often litigate the claim, bringing in the registered owner of the vehicle with matching plates, even where that person denies involvement in the accident.

Litigating an uninsured motorist claim

Most states require that you sue the uninsured motorist (or a fictitious John Doe hit and run driver when litigating the second category of uninsured motorist claim) for your injuries in order to prevail on a breach of contract action against your insurance carrier. Some states such as Virginia require that you actually obtain a judgment against the uninsured motorist (while serving your uninsured motorist carrier in the lawsuit so that your carrier can defend the suit) and then demand payment from the uninsured motorist carrier prior to suing your carrier for any breach of an uninsured motorist provision. Normally there is no need to sue the carrier in such states as Virginia unless there is a dispute as to coverage. Liability is rarely an issue in cases against John Doe defendants, and in any regard, must be litigated in the first suit against the John Doe, if at all. The insurance company will ordinarily pay the judgment, up to your policy limits, once a court determines that an uninsured motorist was at fault.

Typically, the correct venue to file an uninsured motorist action is either in the jurisdiction where the accident occurred OR the jurisdiction where the contract was breached. The location of the accident is generally not appropriate when the at-fault defendant is a John Doe.