You pay for insurance, so you expect that you won’t have to worry about your costs after a car crash. However, some people get hurt in collisions that leave them with unpaid bills. Every driver in Connecticut should carry a combination of liability coverage and uninsured and underinsured motorist protection.
You make a claim against the coverage of the driver who caused the crash but may sometimes need to make a claim against your own policy instead. What can you count on insurance to cover after a car crash in Connecticut where you are not at fault?
The other driver’s policy should pay your basic costs
Every driver in Connecticut must carry at least $25,000 worth of liability coverage for property damage claims and injury to other people. Drivers also have to carry at least that same base amount of uninsured and underinsured motorist protection. Every driver has the option of increasing how much coverage they pay for and adding supplemental coverage to their policy.
After a crash caused by another driver, you should be able to make a claim against their coverage for at least the first $25,000 worth of property damage and any injury-related losses. Connecticut is one of the best states when it comes to the percentage of drivers without insurance. Only South Dakota and Utah have lower rates of uninsured drivers. In Connecticut, only 6.3% of drivers are uninsured at any given moment based on 2019 data.
How will your policy help?
If the driver responsible for the crash only carries the state-required insurance amount, you could have tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs that their policy won’t cover. You can make a claim against your uninsured/underinsured motorist protection when their policy isn’t active or enough to pay your bills.
You can also potentially take the other driver to court. A personal injury lawsuit can allow you to recover costs that the other party’s insurance policy should have paid. When handling an insurance claim, you must remember that insurance adjusters frequently try to pay less than the maximum benefit allowed. You need to prepare for negotiations and to have documentation of your losses to help you get the maximum payments possible given the circumstances of the crash.
Understanding how to protect yourself when dealing with the financial consequences of a Connecticut car crash can help you get the financial support you deserve.
