4 Car Accident Tips

One of the most common problems we have with auto insurance policies in the state of Florida is a lot of drivers are driving without bodily injury liability coverage. We had a client in Tampa recently who, unfortunately, was involved in a very severe accident. The driver that was at fault in the case – a rear-end collision – did not carry bodily injury liability coverage. You might think, “Wait a minute, the guy had insurance at the scene. He presented us with his insurance card.”

Yes, he had the minimum insurance. The minimum insurance is personal injury protection and property damage liability and liability for damage to the car. My client in that particular instance, only had their own personal injury protection available, which is maxed out at the threshold of $10,000, and they did not carry uninsured motorist coverage. Unfortunately, in a case like that, it’s not that we didn’t want the case, but there was no insurance available from the at-fault driver, which makes uninsured motorist coverage of utmost importance in the state of Florida. We’ll be glad to review your insurance policy with you for no charge. Just give us a call, and we will talk about the pros and cons of buying uninsured motorist coverage in the state of Florida.

The insurance laws in the state of Florida are a little bit complicated. It’s easier for us because we do it every day. We had a client recently in Tampa ask us how they could pay for their bills. They had what was called personal injury protection insurance, which is the no-fault insurance you hear about in the state of Florida. As simple as it gets, there’s $10,000 available. The insurance carriers will typically pay 80% of all submitted bills that are related to the accident up to the $10,000 threshold.

As you know, in today’s world, it is not hard to get to $10,000 pretty quickly when bills pile up. A lot of times, hospitals alone will charge you more than $10,000 at your initial visit. How do you get your bills paid? As soon as you get into an accident, you call your insurance company. It doesn’t matter if you weren’t at fault. You have to call them.

It’s a no-fault state. You’re going to get $10,000 from the personal injury protection coverage. That’s what you pay the premiums for. Make a call to your own insurance company and get that claim, even if you weren’t at fault.

Can you go after the person that was at fault? Absolutely; that is what the importance is of hiring a trial attorney who can evaluate your case and see how much coverage is on the other side, the at-fault party, and see if they can recover some of those moneys back for you. Give us a call. We’d love to evaluate your case. We offer free consultations in Hillsborough County.