What If Someone Wrecks Your Car and Isn't on Your Insurance?

If someone wrecks your car and they are not on your insurance, you may still be able to file a claim with your insurance company. This is because your insurance follows your car, not the driver. However, this rule is subject to change depending on the circumstances of your case.

Before we discuss different scenarios, you need to know that you will likely have a rough time pursuing such a claim, especially without an attorney. This is because insurance companies are in business. The less money they spend on compensating policyholders, the better it is for their business.

How Do Car Insurance Policies Work?

A typical car insurance policy protects the car and the driver in the event of an accident. However, most policies allow you to cover other people, such as the passengers in the vehicle, if they get injured in the accident.

Your insurance premiums might go up after the accident. This is especially true if you were also involved in another accident not so long ago. But some insurers allow you to prevent the premiums from going up by purchasing a standalone accident forgiveness policy.

Other companies will review how often you get involved in accidents. In most cases, if you have not been involved in a car accident for many years before the most recent incident, the insurer might decide against increasing your premiums.

Will the Insurance Provider Compensate Me if the Person Who Wrecked My Car Did Not Have My Permission to Drive?

In most cases, insurance companies will not compensate you if the individual who drove the car did not have your permission. In that case, you may be required to file a claim through the driver's insurance provider. You can also consult an experienced car accident attorney to explore your options.

The insurer would not compensate you if the driver who wrecked the vehicle was exclusively removed from your coverage. This happens when you do not trust the driver. For example, if the individual has a known history of driving while drunk, you may want to keep them off your coverage.

Lastly, your insurance might refuse to compensate you if the driver was drunk or unlicensed when the accident occurred or if they regularly used your car. The argument here is that it is okay when someone borrows your car maybe once or twice. But if they are a regular driver, you should include them in your policy. So if the insurance company finds that the driver who wrecked the car regularly drove it but was not included in the policy, they will likely refuse to compensate you.

Will My Insurance Company Pay All the Damages in Full?

This mostly depends on the terms of the insurance policy. The insurance company can only cover what is included in your policy and up to a specific limit. For example, suppose you were the passenger in your own vehicle and suffered body injuries that required $50,000 worth of medical expenses. If your insurance policy only covers up to $40,000 for medical expenses, you may have to settle the remaining $10,000 out of pocket or file a claim with the driver's insurer.

If your insurance policy is enough to cover the damages caused by the other driver, your insurer might still try to recover part of the amount from the driver's insurer. This process is known as subrogation.

What Happens if a Teenage Driver Wrecks My Car?

If a teenage driver wrecks your car, the insurance company will consider whether the driver has a license. If they have a license and are a member of your household, the insurer will likely compensate you for the damages.

On the other hand, if they do not have a license, you may not be able to obtain compensation for the injuries or damages caused. It is even worse if they do not have a license and are not a member of your household.

If I Have a Valid Claim, but the Insurance Company Won't Approve It, What Should I Do?

Firstly, you need to know that insurance companies are businesses like any other. Their primary goal is to make profits, and they will do anything to achieve this goal with every claim submitted to them. In short, such companies will want to collect as many premiums as possible while limiting the amount they need to pay out as compensation for damages caused by a covered individual.

And when they receive a complex claim involving an uninsured driver, they might deny financial responsibility. Understandably, when someone else causes an accident while driving your car, you may believe that your insurance company is not responsible. So when they deny your claim, chances are you will not fight for your rights. After all, how would you fight for rights you are unaware of?

That is where the importance of working with an experienced car accident attorney comes in. but the experience is not enough; you need an attorney with a proven track record and powerful legal resources to fight for you. In other words, you need a car accident attorney from Morgan and Morgan, the largest personal injury law firm in the United States.

How Can Morgan and Morgan Car Accident Attorneys Help?

The truth is that before an insurance company denies your claim, especially knowing that there is a possibility that the claim is valid, they will want to size you up first. Specifically, they will want to see whether you have an attorney, how familiar you are with your rights, and how desperate you are for compensation.

Of course, they will not ask you these questions directly but will still find a way to uncover the details they need from you. For example, during the initial phone call with the claims adjuster, they might want to find out where you live. This sounds like an innocent question, but if you have dealt with insurance companies before, especially concerning insurance claims, you probably know that every piece of information you provide is subject to further scrutiny.

Insurance providers do this hoping to find any reason to deny your claim. And if they cannot deny what appears to be a valid claim, they will still look for ways to undervalue it, limiting the amount you may recover as compensation.

Back to the question about your residence, the insurance claims adjuster can tell your median income just by knowing where you live. This simple information could be used to predict the settlement offer that might seem "reasonable" to you. For example, if you earn $30,000 a year, a settlement amount of $100,000 might seem quite a lot. That is more than three times your yearly salary. But what if we told you that your case could be up to 20 times more than the initial offer?

That is what Morgan and Morgan attorneys do best. When you contact us for a free case evaluation, we will review the specifics of your case, analyze the available evidence, and take the necessary steps to strengthen the case. Then, we will determine the most reasonable settlement for your case. This is only possible after evaluating all factors relating to the case, particularly your injuries and damages.

In some cases, more than one party might be responsible for your injuries. But, of course, you do not expect the insurance company to tell you this unless this information helps lift the burden of compensation off their shoulders. On the contrary, at Morgan and Morgan, we always put our client's interests first in everything we do.

Why Should I Hire a Morgan and Morgan Car Insurance Claims Attorney?

Since we are the country's largest personal injury law firm, serving clients from coast to coast, insurance companies know exactly who we are. They also know that our attorneys do not compromise when fighting for our client's rights.

In fact, hiring Morgan and Morgan car insurance claims dispute lawyers to represent you sends a strong message to the other party that you are serious about your claim. Chances are they will be willing to negotiate when they discover that you have Morgan and Morgan on your team.

This is also partly because we have a solid track record of winning. To put things into perspective, since we first opened our offices to the public in Orlando, Florida, back in 1988, we have helped clients across the country recover a combined $20 billion as compensation for different injuries.

Contact a Morgan and Morgan Car Insurance Dispute Attorney Today

Insurance companies make millions of dollars as profits every year primarily because many people don't fight back when their claims get denied unfairly. That is why we are here to help.

Morgan and Morgan car insurance dispute attorneys are always ready to fight for you if you have a valid claim against an insurance provider. Not sure if your claim is valid? It starts with a free case evaluation with one of our legal representatives. And if your claim is legitimate, we might be able to help you fight back.