Shockingly, one-in-seven drivers in Texas don’t have insurance. If one hits you and you don’t have uninsured and underinsured coverage, you’re out of luck. Both policy features are well worth having, but you may need legal help to make the most of them.
Although uninsured coverage and underinsured coverage are often packaged together, they are strictly two separate types of cover.
Uninsured coverage applies to cases where you suffer loss caused by another driver, but you can’t benefit from their insurance. This includes three main situations:
The uninsured coverage extends to three types of loss:
Meanwhile underinsured coverage is for cases where the other driver has a valid policy, but it doesn’t have a high enough limit to cover the losses. When this happens, the other driver’s policy pays out in full and then the underinsured coverage on your policy pays out to make up the shortfall.
There’s a good chance that you already have uninsured coverage and don’t know about it. Texas law says you have to actively opt out of getting it (as happens with Personal Injury Protection cover). Your insurer must include uninsured coverage unless they have a signed opt-out from you, so you could have the cover even if you haven’t specifically paid for it. It’s well worth checking to see whether you have uninsured coverage and, if so, what terms and conditions apply.
Here are some of the key things to watch out for with uninsured coverage in Texas:
The main thing to watch out for with underinsured coverage claims is that you need permission from your insurer before reaching a settlement with the other driver’s insurer. Your insurer will want to check you’ve got the maximum available payout from the other driver’s insurer, thus reducing the amount your own insurer has to pay.
Underinsured coverage is affected by a legal ruling known as the Brainard precedent. In simple terms, this means it isn’t enough to prove that the other driver was at fault. Instead, your insurer can insist you get a court judgment that proves the other driver caused legal damages. The risk is that your insurer drags its feet or throws out obstacles in the hope that you conclude the time and money spent getting this judgment outweighs the payout you’ll get from the underinsurance claim.
Uninsurance and underinsurance coverage is a valuable element of auto insurance, but you need to understand your rights and responsibilities. That’s particularly the case if you didn’t intentionally sign up for this component and instead have it as the legal default.
Unlike some elements of insurance, uninsurance and underinsurance coverage isn’t a benefit you can passively rely on. Instead, you may need expert advice to reap its full rewards. Contact Bennett Injury Law today if you have any queries or need help on a potential claim.
Charles Bennett is a Plaintiff’s trial attorney and trial consultant based in Dallas, Texas. His law firm, Bennett Injury Law, is a personal injury plaintiff’s law firm that specializes in 18-Wheeler and Commercial crashes, Wrongful Death, Traumatic Brain Damage, Motor Vehicle Crashes, and Workplace Injuries. Cases Charles has consulted on in 2019 have won over $35M in verdicts.