Michigan operates under the No-Fault law, which means that all victims of motor vehicle accidents are guaranteed insurance benefits, regardless of who’s at fault. There are certain limitations on the rights of Michigan auto accident victims when it comes to claims against at-fault parties, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that they cannot hold the at-fault party liable for the inconveniences brought about by the accident. Apart from the personal protection insurance benefits, they can also claim damages for the recovery of non-economic problems and excess economic losses.

Claiming Compensation for Michigan Motor Accidents

Michigan motorists are only required by law to carry $20,000 in no-fault insurance coverage, and these are usually capped at $40,000 per accident. This means that regardless of how serious an accident was, the at-fault driver’s insurance company only needs to pay $40,000 at most. However, $40,000 often isn’t enough, especially when talking about auto repairs and medical costs. Add the fact that there might be more than one victim in the accident who might share the $40,000 among them, and you can definitely see how insufficient the coverage can be to some people.  For that reason, people opt into additional insurance plans like underinsured motorist coverage. This type of policy will help safeguard you financially in case you ever get involved in an accident with a person who holds a lousy no-fault insurance coverage.

What is Underinsured Motorist Coverage?

An underinsured motorist coverage is an opt-in insurance policy that extends coverage to include payouts for property and bodily damages caused by at-fault motorists who have insufficient auto insurance coverage. Basically, injured parties can claim compensation atop the limit of the at-fault driver’s own policy.

Processing Claims for Underinsured Motorist Coverage

Having an underinsured motorist coverage on top of your existing coverage is smart, but you have to make sure that you follow the claims procedure precisely to prevent the nullification of your claim. Otherwise, having an underinsured motorist coverage would just be a waste of your time and resources.  As mentioned, most of the policies in Michigan will require victims to exhaust the liability limit of the at-fault driver’s insurance before going forward with a claim. Additionally, these policies also require victims to get written consent from their own insurance company before finalizing any claim with the at-fault driver.

  • How much additional coverage can one claim with under-insured motorist coverage?

Most, if not all, insurance companies will only pay enough damages to cover one’s expenses post-accident and nothing more. That means that unlike other personal injury cases where victims can claim exorbitant amount of money if they think it is necessary, motor accident victims in Michigan are only required by law to be compensated just enough to stand back up again after an accident. For under-insured motorist coverage cases, the insurance company will only cover your expenses up until a certain limit is reached. Victims cannot request more than the actual cost spent as a direct result of the auto accident.

  • How long should you wait before you file your claim?

This varies depending on what your insurance company is, but most of these companies require claimants to inform the insurer of the potential claim only after certain conditions are met. Once the claim has been filed, the insurance company will settle after looking through the billings and invoices received as a result of the accident. If the insurer thinks that certain costs included in the claim are not related to the accident, they might deny those claims unless you go to binding arbitration.

According to the Insurance Research Council back in 2015, around one in eight drivers do not have insurance coverage in the United States. It is estimated that the number is the same for drivers who may be insured, but do not have a good enough coverage to compensate their victims well. To protect yourself financially when those accidents happen, it is vital that you also invest in having under-insured motorist coverage for your peace of mind.

Let an Experienced Firm like The Clark Law Office Represent You when Filing for Under-insured Motorist Coverage Claims

While most insurance policies are expensive, under-insured motorist coverage plans will not set you back a lot financially. Good policies often cost $50 and even less annually.  If you experience auto accidents in Michigan and you think you might need additional compensation for the accident, you must make sure that you have invested on having an under-insured motorist insurance coverage beforehand. Michigan law is tricky when it comes to motor accident policies, which means that you need all the help you can get to receive compensation for your troubles.

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