Struck By an Uninsured Motorist?
When car accidents happen, most assume that simply having car insurance means they are covered. But when one of thousands commuters across Kentucky and Indiana gets struck by a driver carrying the minimum in liability coverage or no insurance at all, financial recovery depends on your policy for underinsured and uninsured motorists.
If you commute between Louisville and Southern Indiana then there is a huge difference in your potential payout depending on what side of the river your accident occurred on. As an attorney licensed in Kentucky and Indiana, I know the side of the bridge you’re on means six-figure differences.
Underinsured Motorist (UIM) Coverage applies when the driver at-fault has insurance but policy limits are too low to cover costs. These can include a victim’s medical bills, lost wages, and permanent injuries. UIM makes up the difference. On the other hand is Uninsured Motorist (UM) Coverage. This applies when the at-fault driver doesn’t have insurance or simply flees the scene.
Kentucky and Indiana require insurance companies to offer these coverages, but depending on which state you’re in the amount returned varies. Kentucky offers victims the ability to ‘stack’ their coverages. Some households have multiple vehicles insured on one policy and pay separate premiums for UIM coverage on each car. Those multiple policies can get stacked for a single accident. For example, you could have 3 vehicles insured and each vehicle under the policy had a $50,000 UIM limit. That means the state of Kentucky would permit you $150,000 in coverage for UIM driver accidents.
The Indiana Divergence
Up north in Indiana, however, the state unambiguously disallows this stacking. Indiana Code § 27-7-5-5 requires that an insurer’s total liability for a single accident can not exceed the highest limit of a single applicable policy. If you had each vehicle insured under a $50,000 Underinsured Motorist limit and get into an accident with an underinsured driver you will only have $50,000 in coverage. To make matters worse, Indiana does not add your own UIM coverage to the at-fault driver’s policy. The at-fault driver’s insurance limit is subtracted from your coverage to ensure it won’t exceed the limit of one policy. This is a “limits-to-limits” reduction.
But the trouble does not stop there. Handling a UIM claim incorrectly could destroy your chance to recover anything at all. Both Kentucky and Indiana have rigid statutory frameworks dictating that victims must submit written notice of proposed settlements to their UIM carriers. This then sets a 30-day window in which the insurance company can approve the settlement or ‘advance’ this money to the victim in order to keep their right to sue the at-fault driver. If this process is not done correctly, the UIM carrier denies the claim.
Our firm litigates personal injury cases on both sides of the river every day. We understand the statutory traps, deadlines, and court rulings unique to each state. Successful recovery requires an attorney dedicated to making sure you get what you are owed no matter where you are.
If you have been injured by an underinsured or uninsured driver in Louisville or Southern Indiana, don’t struggle with cross-border insurance policy rules and regulations. Contact our offices today for a free, strategic evaulation of your options.