The state of Kentucky requires that all drivers carry bodily injury insurance coverage of at least $25,000 per person as part of their automobile insurance policies. While Kentucky legislature has become much more strict about enforcing these insurance requirements, the Insurance Research Council (IRC) estimates that 29.7 million drivers in the United States don’t carry insurance, making uninsured motorists a significant ongoing problem. Medical bills can quickly add up for those people who are involved in accidents with uninsured or underinsured motorists, so it is important to know what your options are if you find yourself face to face with one of these drivers.
Uninsured/Underinsured Bodily Injury Insurance
If you take a glance at your auto insurance policy, chances are you will see the coverage options “Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury” and “Underinsured Motorist Bodily Injury” listed on your policy paperwork. The state of Kentucky requires that insurance carriers include these options unless policyholders specifically request to decline them. In addition to Personal Injury Protection, these auto policy options are designed to give you some coverage if you are involved in an accident with someone who doesn’t have enough insurance to cover you and your passengers’ medical bills incurred because of injuries sustained in the collision. Unfortunately, these coverage amounts oftentimes are not enough to cover all of your bills if you are seriously injured.
Even if your insurance does cover all of your short-term medical bills, you may be able to hold the other driver responsible for some of your additional expenses. Once you calculate the long-lasting effects that a serious injury can have, including pain and suffering, inability to work and long-term physical therapy, your costs can skyrocket as a result of your accident, and you may be able to hold that other driver accountable.
Accidents with Uninsured or Underinsured Motorists
If you are in an accident with someone who doesn’t have insurance coverage, or who doesn’t carry enough insurance to cover all of your medical bills in full, you have a few options available to you instead of simply paying those bills out of your own pocket.
First, you may want to contact your insurance companies. Your health insurance company, auto insurance company, or even your home insurance provider might help cover some of the medical bills for you and your passengers.
Another phone call you can make is to the banks where you hold credit cards. Some credit cards have perks that cover medical expenses in the event of an accident, especially if you are driving a rental vehicle or traveling on your card’s credit line.
Getting Help
If you want help deciding who to contact, or would like to find out if you can hold the uninsured or underinsured driver responsible for any financial hardship you go through because of an accident, Gladstein Law Firm, PLLC is here to help. Please give us a call, or get in touch with us through our online contact form and we will contact you to discuss your situation.
