Is your injury deserving of more than the at fault driver’s available liability insurance? This is an all too often occurrence. Georgia requires liability insurance of at least $25,000.00, but what if your injury results in medical bills in excess of that? If your only source of funds is the at fault driver’s liability insurance, you won’t recover for all your economic damages, not to mention pain and suffering, unless you can find other sources.
The good news is that often there are other sources you might not think about. If you have “med-pay” insurance, then that can help. After med-pay, the most common source is your Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist Coverage (UM). You may have UM coverage that exceeds that of the at fault driver. Under a new law passed last year, you also have the option of stacking your UM coverage on top of the at fault driver’s liability coverage unless you choose to opt out of that coverage. Another form of stacking occurs when you or a family member who resides with you have other policies in place for other cars. If so, then you may be able to stack those UM policies to yours.
The at fault driver may have other insurance, such as an umbrella policy on his/her homeowner’s policy that would cover acts of negligence away from the home.
If the at fault driver was working at the time of the accident, then you may be able to go after his/her employer. Employers are liable for the negligent acts of their employees. It may not be apparent, but with the use of cell phones today, people often make work related calls from their cell phones. Another potential source is your employer if you were working at the time. This would take the form of a workman’s comp claim.
There may be more than one responsible party. Did someone else contribute to the accident? Often road defects and/or designs can cause accidents. If so, then the DOT or local government may have exposure. This list is not exhaustive and there are other possibilities. The point is to make sure you have exhausted all possible sources of recovery before settlement and never sign off on a release until you have talked to an attorney.