PRACTICE AREAS

Underinsured Motorist Coverage

Underinsured motorist coverage is not required in the State of Texas. In order to be eligible for underinsured motorist benefits, you, or the party you are riding with, must specifically carry underinsured motorist coverage on the applicable insurance policy. Underinsured motorist coverage is available ONLY when the liable party in an auto accident does not have enough liability insurance to cover your damages.

A policy holder who carries underinsured motorist coverage usually has one of the following types of underinsured policy limits: 25/50, 50/100, 100/300. Of course, the amount of underinsured policy limits depends upon the amount of premium paid on the applicable policy.

Lets take 25/50 for instance to explain what this means. Essentially, when 25/50 underinsured coverage is evoked, this means that the insurance company will pay no more than $25,000 per person on an underinsured motorist claim, and no more than $50,000 per accident on an underinsured motorist claim.

To better explain how this works, lets assume that Larry and Moe, riding in Larry's car, are severely injured in a car accident with John Doe who only has minimum liability insurance of 25/50. Lets also assume that both Larry and Moe each have $30,000 in medical expenses, and that John Doe's insurance company has agreed to pay the liability policy limits of $25,000 to Larry and $25,000 to Moe. Lets further assume that Larry, as the driver, carries underinsured motorist coverage of 25/50.

Upon receiving notice from John Doe's insurance company that it has agreed to pay its liability policy limits, both Larry and Moe must seek written permission from Larry's underinsured motorist carrier to accept the settlements. Failure to acquire written permission to settle from Larry's underinsured motorist carrier prior to a formal settlement may void any underinsured motorist coverage.

Essentially, no matter how many people are involved in the auto accident, and no matter how serious the injuries, Larry's underinsured motorist carrier will not pay any more than the applicable underinsured policy limits. Therefore, when you have three or more claimants with serious injuries and only limited underinsured motorist benefits, it can very quickly become a race to the underinsured insurance proceeds.

What If The Owner of The Car I'm Riding in Has Underinsured Motorist Coverage and I, As a Passenger, have Underinsured Motorist Coverage On My Own Policy, Can I Stack The Benefits?

You are entitled to stack underinsured motorist benefits in Texas. Applying the above example, this means that if Moe, as a passenger, carried his own underinsured motorist benefits of 50/100, then Moe would be entitled to stack the benefits as follows: Moe would be entitled to John Doe''s liability limits of $25,000, then Moe would be entitled to the $25,000 underinsured limits from Larry's policy, and then Moe would be entitled to the $50,000 underinsured limits from his own policy; of course, this is assuming that Moe's case was worth at least $100,000. Larry on the other hand, since it was his car, is limited to his own underinsured motorist benefits and can not file a claim under Moe's policy.

If you suffered a serious injury from an auto, motorcycle, or 18 wheeler accident, and you have concerns that the responsible third party does not have enough liability insurance to cover your damages, then you should consult with a Houston personal injury attorney who has the experience and answers you need to move forward with assisting you on your possible underinsured motorist claim.  Contact Joel A. Gordon & Associates for your free consultation.

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If you and/or a family member have suffered serious or fatal injuries due to an accident, you and/or the family member may be eligible to file a claim. However, persons seeking to preserve any potential legal claims should contact an attorney promptly because Texas has mandatory time periods ("Statute of Limitations") in which a lawsuit must be filed.