Periodically, concerned victims of car and truck crashes come to Clark and Steinhorn, LLC with pained expressions. They are worried that they will not be compensated for their injuries, medicall bills and income loss. We reassure them and explain how the U.M. process works.
In essence we tell them that as long as they themselves have car insurance they will be fine. That is because all Maryland auto insurance policies require uninsured motorist coverage. Now the amount of that coverage is what you choose it to be, so if you have a low limit (The minimum is $30,000.00) that is the extent of what you can receive but obviously that is substantially better than nothing.
Maryland is of course a state that mandates that all vehicle owners maintain insurance on their cars and trucks but the fact is that sometimes people don't make their payments and "poof" their coverage is gone.
A second facet of uninsured motorist coverage is its function as "underinsured motorist coverage". What that means is that if another driver or drivers are at fault for a crash, you are not necessarily limited to the amount of liability insurance they have chosen to pay for.
As an example, a recent client was in a collision on Route 29 in nearby Burtonsville, Maryland. His injuries culminated in two back surgeries and over $100,000.00 in medical bills. The at-fault driver had only the Maryland minimum of $30,000.00 in liability coverage. fortunately the truck he was operating at the time had $1,000,000.00 in uninsured coverage and he was able to collect the at-fault driver's $30,000.00 plus an additional $350,000.00.
U.M. claims have some complexities and it is always worth consulting Clark and Steinhorn, LLC at (301) 317-1001 or at Maryland-Law.com to ensure you receive your fair compensation.
