If you or someone you love has been seriously injured in an accident, you may assume the losses you suffered will be covered by an insurance settlement. When the at-fault driver is uninsured or underinsured, you have a problem – who will pay for your lost wages, medical care, and treatment, rehabilitation, or pain and suffering? In cases of underinsured or uninsured drivers, you may need to rely on your car insurance. But – are you covered?
The Added Insurance That Can Save the Day.
When you purchase car insurance in Colorado Springs, or any area of the state, “stacking” your insurance is possible. Stacking refers to insurance coverage in accidents caused by uninsured or underinsured drivers. Many auto insurance policies allow you to combine separate coverages to a higher limit. Is this possible in your case? We urge you to speak to an attorney who can read the fine print and decipher the legalese in your insurances.
Protections Against Accidents with Underinsured or Uninsured Drivers
All drivers in the state of Colorado are required to carry liability insurance. Most drivers choose the lowest required amount of coverage, which in the state is:
- $25,000 in coverage for cases involving bodily injury or death
- $50,000 maximum limit for all injured individuals in an accident
- $15,000 to pay for property damage
If you were hit by an uninsured driver, you might be able to “stack” your auto insurance policies for the vehicles your family owns, raising the limits to a more reasonable level.
Uninsured and Underinsured Drivers in Colorado
As reported by the III (Insurance Information Institute), 16.3 percent of the drivers in the state do not have auto insurance. That translates into one in every six drivers with whom you share the roads, streets, and highways in the area. In other cases, the driver carries only the basic minimum as required by law, and for a serious injury that requires weeks or months of treatment, the basic $25,000 is not enough to cover the full scope of the losses.
Stacking Insurance – What’s the Process?
The Colorado legislature passed a law in 2008 that made it possible for separate coverages for underinsured and uninsured coverages to be “stacked,” but only when both are in your name. This change in the law made it possible for injured people to recover compensation from their own policies when the driver had no coverage or minimal liability coverage. When most people buy auto insurance, they don’t read the small print, which is impossible to understand for the layperson. If you or a loved one was in an accident with an uninsured or underinsured driver, it is critical that you have your auto insurance policies reviewed by your attorney – you may have more options than you know.
Contact The Bussey Law Firm, P.C. to speak with us about seeking fair compensation after an accident with an uninsured or underinsured driver. Reach out to us at (719) 475-2555 for a free consultation.