It’s bad enough when you are just going about your day, and a careless driver hits you. You have to deal with medical bills, missed time from work, and potentially a painful recovery. But then you find out something even worse—the at-fault driver’s insurance policy doesn’t meet Virginia’s minimum coverage requirements.
That’s not good news, as it could mean there isn’t enough money to cover all your expenses. In some cases, the at-fault driver’s insurance may be so inadequate that it’s like having no insurance at all. That puts you, the injured person, in a frightening position—the driver who caused the crash doesn’t have the legal coverage they were supposed to, and their insurance company may try to walk away from their responsibility.
For decades, Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp has handled Virginia car-crash claims involving insurance disputes. The firm is recognized as a Best Law Firms® Tier 1 practice, a mark of quality that reflects real results and peer review. This experience matters when an insurer says, “Sorry, there’s not enough coverage.”
Below, we explain how you can still get the compensation you deserve in a situation like this. Meanwhile, if you or a loved one was hurt in a car accident, contact our Virginia Beach car accident attorneys at 833-997-1774 for a free consultation.
What Are the Minimum Insurance Requirements?
In Virginia, every driver must carry liability insurance with specific minimum coverage amounts. These minimums exist to make sure that if someone causes an accident, there’s at least some money available to compensate injured victims.
According to the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, the insurance requirements today are set forth in Virginia Code 46.2-472. For policies effective on or after January 1, 2025, they are as follows:
- $50,000 bodily injury or death to one person
- $100,000 bodily injury or death to two or more in one accident
- $25,000 property damage
If a driver doesn’t carry at least these minimum levels of coverage, they’re not meeting Virginia’s requirements.
What Happens When an Insurance Company Doesn’t Provide Minimum Coverage?
If the insurance company failed to provide the minimum statutory limits, that usually means one of several things:
- The company issued a policy with coverage amounts below what Virginia law requires.
- The company cancelled or reduced coverage without proper notice.
- There was an administrative error that wasn’t properly addressed.
Insurance companies are legally required to issue policies that provide these minimum coverages. If they don’t, that affects everyone involved, especially the injured person in an accident.
The biggest issue is that there may not be enough money in the at-fault person’s insurance policy to cover your medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and property damage. If your medical bills alone total $50,000, for example, but the insurance company issued a policy with only $20,000 in coverage, you would be left with a $30,000 gap that needs to be filled.
You may want to sue the driver personally, but often individuals don’t have enough personal assets to pay that kind of bill. That’s why we have insurance to begin with. But if the insurance company isn’t living up to its obligations, victims can struggle to get fair compensation.
What Options Does the Victim Have?
Under Virginia law, insurance companies licensed to do business in the state are required to issue policies that comply with the requirements. If they knowingly or negligently issue a policy below those limits, the Virginia State Corporation Commission’s Bureau of Insurance (BOI) may administer penalties and fines and order the company to correct or reissue its faulty policies. In extreme cases, they may revoke or suspend the insurer’s license.
These actions don’t help the injured person, however. In fact, there is no direct “punishment payout” if an insurer issued an illegal policy. Instead, Virginia points victims toward substitute coverage. One of the most common defaults is uninsured or underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage. Virginia law requires insurers to offer this coverage, so if you have this on your policy, you would use that to increase your coverage amount, as it’s designed to kick in when the at-fault driver’s liability coverage isn’t enough to cover your damages.
You may also be able to stack your UM/UIM coverage by combining the limits of multiple vehicles on your policy to get a higher total amount of coverage. The at-fault driver, as well, may have other insurance policies, such as an “umbrella” policy, that could help a little more. If multiple drivers or vehicles were involved in the accident, other insurance companies might share in the liability.
In some rare cases, your car accident lawyer may also look into whether the insurer or its agent acted negligently in how the policy was issued, but the main protection Virginia gives victims is through their own UM coverage.
How A Car Accident Lawyer Can Help
Insurance companies care about their bottom line, not about helping you cover your expenses. That’s why it’s always wise to contact us right away, as we can help you manage all the moving parts in a complex case like this to make sure you get the compensation you need to put your life back together.
Keep in mind that insurers may push for a quick, low settlement before you understand the full picture of your injuries and your time to recovery, or your own UM/UIM options. Don’t ever give a recorded statement or sign anything that could affect your rights until you talk to your attorney.
At Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp, we verify the at-fault driver’s policy and limits, check DMV compliance, and analyze your UM to see what’s available. We also take every step necessary to prove the other driver’s fault using crash evidence, witness and expert statements, and accident reconstruction when necessary. We will show the full medical and economic impact of the accident on you and your family, and check every avenue for the highest lawful recovery.
If the at-fault driver’s insurer failed to issue the legal minimum coverage, you’re not stuck. We have the experience you need to protect your rights, as we did for our client who was rear-ended while exiting I-64 in Virginia Beach. The collision left him with persistent neck, arm, and hand pain, which doctors eventually diagnosed as an asymptomatic degenerative spinal disc disease becoming symptomatic following the trauma of the crash.
Our client had to go through surgery, and ultimately was unable to continue working his job. After much negotiating, we secured a $675,000 settlement for him.
Call any of our offices today in Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton, Norfolk, and Chesapeake.
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