Blog of Charles Bryan Alred

Uninsured Motorists And Personal Injury

Posted on March 1, 2023

To register a car in Oklahoma, the law requires owners to have a minimum amount of car insurance, which is $25,000 bodily injury per person and $50,000 per accident. Drivers are required to carry proof of insurance with them and show it to law enforcement upon request.

It sounds easy enough. Unfortunately, nearly 25 percent of Oklahoma drivers are on the road without car insurance. Apparently, the driver cancels the insurance after registering the vehicle.

If you are in an accident where the at-fault driver is an uninsured motorist (UM), or if you are in a hit-and-run accident, you may be able to collect for your damages under your own auto insurance policy if you have UM coverage.

OKLAHOMA LAW REQUIRES INSURERS TO OFFER UM COVERAGE

You are not required to have UM coverage in Oklahoma, but the law does require your insurer to offer it to you. If you decline the offer, you must confirm in writing that the coverage was offered to you, but you declined to purchase it.

HOW UM COVERAGE MAY HELP

UM-coverage is just what it sounds like: coverage for your personal injuries if you are in an accident with a driver who is uninsured. This means you can collect for your medical expenses, lost wages, and other personal injury losses. It does not cover property damage, so will not click in to pay for the repair of the damage to your vehicle. Important factors to know about UM coverage:

• It will only cover you if are not the driver at fault for the accident.
• If you are a pedestrian and hit by an uninsured driver, your own UM policy on your own vehicle will cover you.
• All passengers who were injured in your vehicle as a result of the crash with the uninsured driver are covered by your own UM policy.
• All of your family members who live with you in your home are generally covered by your UM policy if they are injured while passengers of another vehicle that was involved in a crash with an uninsured driver.
• If it was a hit-and-run accident, in order for your UM policy to be triggered, you must have filed a police report. Some policies also require the hit-and-run driver to have made contact with your vehicle in order for you to be covered. For example, if you slam into a tree because another car forced you off the road, your UM policy will not cover you since the at-fault driver did not make contact with your vehicle.

GET LEGAL HELP AFTER AN ACCIDENT WITH AN UNINSURED MOTORIST

Charles Bryan Alred has been helping injured people in Oklahoma since 1987. He has decades of experience in collecting damages for those injured in accidents with uninsured motorists. He and his team serve clients in Tulsa, Sand Springs, Broken Arrow, Jenks, Owasso, and Collinsville. Call today for more information or to schedule a free consultation at (918)745-9960.