Pedestrian Personal Injury - Who pays for a hit and run?

In the State of New Hampshire and in most other States, your automobile liability insurance policy also has a component for “uninsured motorist coverage”. That uninsured motorist coverage provides protection to the pedestrian, in this case. That injured pedestrian would have a claim against the phantom driver who left the scene and whose identity is not known.

 Again, in the State of New Hampshire and most other States, that phantom faulty driver is considered an uninsured motorist, and therefore, the injured pedestrian can go to his or her own automobile policy to seek the same recovery that he would have to pay.

For that reason, we at Normand & Associates always encourage our friends, family, and clients to review their automobile insurance policies and make sure that they have adequate coverage. We recommend a minimum of $250,000 in bodily injury and uninsured motorist coverage. We also recommend an umbrella policy up to $1,000,000. Frequently, the umbrella policy can be purchased for as little as $200 per year. That umbrella policy, with an uninsured motorist component, would mean that the injured pedestrian, in this example, would have up to $1,000,000 in insurance benefits to seek in recovery for injuries, lost earnings, future disabilities, and all other damages authorized by law against the phantom driver.

 Please tell your friends about this little known insurance coverage, and encourage them all to review their automobile insurance policies. We could all be a victim of a phantom driver who leaves the scene after an accident. More importantly, most automobile operators, in our opinion, do not have nearly enough liability insurance coverage to cover a claim that could be asserted against them when they cause a significant injury. In that case, the injured individual, like the one in the example above, could pursue the wrongdoer for the maximum amount of the insurance coverage and then pursue their own uninsured motorist coverage on their vehicle for the under-insured portion of their claim.

Again, we urge you all to review your insurance policies. 

Articles contained here are not intended to provide legal advice, only providing general information. We encourage individuals to consult with an attorney regarding individual circumstances.