The South Carolina Highway Patrol believe a white 1989 to 1998 Freightliner was the culprit of the hit and run accident on I-20 that seriously injured the driver of a 2009 Chevy in Bishopville, South Carolina (SC). Reports indicate the accident occurred at 1 a.m. and the tractor-trailer, which was traveling too fast for the weather conditions at the time, slammed into the rear of the Chevy, according to wistv.com.
I hope SC police eventually find this elusive tractor-trailer and reprimand the driver. Getting hit by a car or truck is terrible, but then having the at-fault driver leave the scene makes matters even worse for the injured victim. The driver of the Chevy not only has to struggle with recuperating from a serious injury, but is unable to file a claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance.
Fortunately, there is still a way for this injured driver to obtain compensation that could help cover medical bills, lost wages, and rehabilitation. It’s called uninsured motorist coverage. This is coverage on your own policy that you would file to obtain from your insurance company. Essentially, your insurance company provides a legal defense to the hit and run driver and must pay the total uninsured motorist coverage on your policy.
If you are not the at-fault driver, under nearly all states uninsured motorist laws, your insurance company may not raise your premiums as a result of making an uninsured motorist claim against an at-fault uninsured or hit and run driver.
Our firm wrote an in-depth, special consumer report about uninsured, underinsured, and accidents involving hit and run drivers (take advantage of the free download here).
Hopefully, the police will track down the at-fault driver and the injured Chevy driver won’t have to go through this process, but it’s important to know, just in case the at-fault driver remains at-large.