Uninsured Motorist Lawyer Celina, TX

All Texas drivers are required to carry insurance for their vehicles, in order to protect innocent people from third-party vehicles that may be at fault in an accident. Despite this, there continue to be a large number of uninsured or underinsured vehicles on the roads, putting everyone else at risk.

Oftentimes, people who cause accidents elude punishment by driving off. Getting into a potentially serious accident caused by a hit-and-run driver could be a challenging situation. You should be able to successfully recover from your own insurance company if you have Uninsured Motorist Coverage (UM) under your policy, however.

Most insurance companies will attempt to contest your claim when an accident happens and will hire a defense attorney to help protect their interests. To successfully file your claim, you will need an accident lawyer to help you establish and fulfill any legal requirements needed to recover damages from your accident. This is where DB Hill comes into the picture. If you have had an accident with a hit and run driver or with an uninsured/underinsured motorist, the attorneys at our firm can help you get a full and fair recovery from your insurance company.

What is uninsured/underinsured (UM/UIM) coverage?

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage is insurance coverage that applies to accidents that have been caused by another driver who does not have any insurance or has insufficient insurance to cover the damages. Unless you specifically waive this coverage in writing, your motor vehicle insurance should include UM/UIM coverage by default.

When can you claim uninsured motorist coverage?

Uninsured Motorist is generally claimable for any policyholder who gets hit by an uninsured or under-insured motorist. You do not have to be driving a vehicle at the time of the accident because coverage would also extend to pedestrians.

You must, however, generally be one of the following:

1. The holder of a UM/UIM policy;
2. A close family member living with with the holder of a UM/UIM policy;
3. A person authorized to drive the vehicle covered by the UM/UIM policy, and who was driving it at the time of the accident; or
4. A passenger within the insured vehicle at the time of the accident.

Unfortunately, when accidents do happen recovering losses under your UM/UIM coverage isn’t usually so straightforward. Therefore, if you were injured or suffered property loss in an accident and are seeking UM coverage recovery, you may need to hire an accident attorney.

At DB Hill, the first thing we do for our clients is to establish the culpability of the other driver by proving the four requirements:

1. An existing duty of care.
2. A breach of said duty of care.
3. Damages to your person and/or property.
4. Evidence that the damages were a result of the accident.

Then, we will establish that the other driver was uninsured.  We will then file a lawsuit on your behalf against the negligent driver. This is an extremely important step as it will help establish whether the other driver does have insurance coverage or not. Your claim for UM coverage will be denied if you skip this step and it turns out that the driver had insurance coverage.

To protect your claim in case of a hit-and-run driver, you will need to take these additional steps:

1. You must demonstrate that there was physical contact between the negligent driver’s vehicle and yours;
2. Immediately notify law enforcement officers of the incident; and
3. Within 30 days of the accident, notify your insurance company.

If you fail to file a lawsuit within two years of the date of the accident, you will be barred from seeking compensation. Therefore, it is important to speak with an accident attorney as soon as possible so that the process can begin.

At DB Hill, we specialize in handling personal injury cases, so you can trust that you will receive the maximum amount of recovery.