The hit-and-run is one of those accidents that are not only terrible, but also extremely frustrating for the victim(s). Take, for example, a recent hit-and-run car accident in Spencer, North Carolina (NC). The driver of a four-door vehicle ran a stop sign at the intersection of South Carolina Avenue and Fifth Street slamming into another car. As a result, a 5-year-old girl who was sitting in the back of the hit vehicle was seriously injured, according to wbtv.com.
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Imagine being the parents of this young girl. Not only are they worrying about their child surviving and hopefully not being left with a permanent injury like paralysis or a traumatic brain injury, but they are also forced to worry about who will cover their medical bills.
In most car accidents, you have an at-fault driver who has provided their insurance information. The injured victim would consult a personal injury attorney, file an injury claim, and eventually receive compensation from the at-fault driver’s insurance company. With a hit-and-run, this option is not there since the at-fault driver decided to flee.
Fortunately, there is Uninsured Motorist (UM) insurance coverage. There are two types of coverage: uninsured coverage for bodily injury (UM-BI) and uninsured coverage for property damage (UM-PD). North Carolina drivers are now required to carry both.
Therefore, if the hit-and-run driver is never brought to justice, the parents of the injured child could file a claim against their own insurance company for UM compensation. This is an odd situation since your insurance company will act as the de-facto defense for the hit-and-run driver but will eventually result in you getting compensated for your medical expenses.
To learn more, download our free consumer report on what to do in case you’re seriously injured in an accident with an uninsured/underinsured driver.