If A Car Accident Wasn’t My Fault Who Pays My Deductible?

Posted on March 7th, 2018

Not all states require the same insurance coverage for drivers. Some states are No-Fault states and some are At-Fault states and if you are involved in a car accident your state’s status will determine how your insurance claim is handled.

No-Fault

No-Fault means that a driver does not have to prove someone else is at fault in order to receive compensation from their insurance company. No-Fault states generally have required minimum levels of personal injury insurance for drivers. This is intended to offset costs of damages, both physical and proprietary, from insurance companies and it means that drivers usually cannot sue for pain and suffering unless the damages are so high their insurance is exhausted, although each case will always be unique.

At-Fault

At-Fault means that a driver who causes a car accident along with his insurance company, are responsible for all damages to the injured party. The disadvantage of At-Fault is that a driver who caused an accident can countersue, claiming they were not at fault, thereby, creating a high number of court cases and a backlog on court dates to hear these cases.

The state of Texas is a No-Fault state, requiring everyone who drives to be insured in the amount of at least 30/60/25:

$30,000 for each person injured
$60,000 for personal injury
$25,000 for property damage

Supplemental insurance, which is not required by law but is wise to purchase, is coverage such as uninsured/underinsured coverage and personal injury protection (PIP) especially in the state of Texas which is one of the leading states for uninsured or underinsured drivers.

What if the Other Driver is Uninsured?

In Texas, uninsured/underinsured coverage is called UM/UIM (Uninsured Motorist/Underinsured Motorist) coverage. In the event that someone else is at fault who does not have insurance or not enough insurance, your UM/UIM coverage can protect you. The coverage you choose can be at the same limit as your main required insurance and has a set limit deductible of $250 for all claims.

In the event, you don’t have UM/UIM coverage it may be possible that collision coverage, not included in the main required coverage, could pay for the damages to your vehicle. There are two types of collision coverage, the basic coverage that pays the other party’s damages if you are at fault, and collision coverage which pays for the damages to your car.

In the event that you are involved in an accident through the fault of someone who does not have car insurance, they could be responsible for all of the damages not only for themselves but all of your damages.

Filing a Claim With the Help of an Attorney

Regardless of fault, you’ll need to file a claim with your insurance company. Your insurance company will attempt to determine fault. If the other driver’s insurance disputes fault and you were 50 percent at fault or less, you can call a Plano car accident attorney to represent you in your claim against the other driver and their insurance company.

Only an experienced attorney can advise you on the possible outcome of a legal case involving a car accident, whether you were at fault nor not. If you have been in a car accident and have suffered damages or injury let the Law Offices of David Kohm aggressively litigate your case.