Why You Should Get Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage
A car accident can change your life in seconds. Make sure the person who causes it doesn't leave you paying the price.
You can be a safe, responsible driver, carry auto insurance, and follow every rule of the road—and still suffer serious injuries because someone else made a careless decision. What happens if that driver has no auto insurance? Or what if they have insurance, but their policy limits are nowhere near enough to cover your medical bills, lost wages, and other damages? In Montana, the minimum limits of auto insurance is $25,000.00 and often times the worst drivers in the state carry the minimum or no insurance at all.
Unfortunately, the fact that another driver caused your injuries does not guarantee that you will receive the compensation you deserve.
That's why uninsured motorist (UM) and underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage can be so important for Montana drivers. These coverages help protect you and your family from the financial consequences of another driver's lack of insurance or inadequate insurance.
My advice is to call you insurer and inquire if you have uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. If you do not, adding these coverages will not dramatically increase your premiums (in my experience).
What Is Uninsured Motorist Coverage?
Uninsured motorist coverage is designed to protect you if you are injured in an accident caused by a driver who has no auto insurance.
Imagine you're driving home when another driver runs a red light and crashes into your vehicle. You suffer a serious injury, require surgery, and cannot return to work for several months. After the collision, you discover the other driver has no auto insurance.
You did nothing wrong. Yet you may be left facing substantial medical expenses, lost income, rehabilitation costs, and other losses—with no insurance policy belonging to the at-fault driver to turn to. While the at-fault driver may be charged criminally for not carrying insurance, you will still be left holding the bag financially if you do not carry uninsured motorist coverage.
Without uninsured motorist coverage, recovering compensation may depend on pursuing the at-fault driver personally. Even if you obtain a judgment, collecting it can be difficult if that person has few assets or limited income. Typically, drivers who do not have any auto insurance, have little to no assets.
Uninsured motorist coverage gives you another potential source of recovery: your own auto insurance policy.
Depending on your policy and the circumstances of the crash, UM coverage may help compensate you for covered bodily injuries and related damages when an uninsured driver is legally responsible for the accident.
What Is Underinsured Motorist Coverage?
Not every dangerous driver is completely uninsured. Sometimes, the driver who causes a crash has insurance but carries only the minimum required limits.
That can be a serious problem when an accident results in significant injuries.
For example, suppose another driver causes a collision that leaves you with $150,000 in covered damages. The driver has a bodily injury liability limit of $25,000 per person. Even if the other driver's insurance pays its full available limit, that payment may cover only a fraction of your losses. Nowadays, a case with a relatively minor surgery will equal or exceed $25,000 in medical expenses alone.
Where applicable, underinsured motorist coverage can help bridge the gap between the compensation available under the at-fault driver's policy and your covered damages.
The key distinction is simple:
Uninsured motorist coverage: Helps protect you when the at-fault driver has no applicable bodily injury liability insurance.
Underinsured motorist coverage: Helps protect you when the at-fault driver's available insurance is insufficient to cover your losses, subject to the rules governing your policy.
Both coverages address the same fundamental problem: the person who caused your injuries may not have the financial resources or insurance coverage necessary to compensate you fully.
Why This Coverage Matters in Montana
Montana drivers know that getting behind the wheel comes with risks. A collision can happen on a busy city street, a rural highway, or a long stretch of road far from the nearest hospital.
What many drivers don't consider is how much their financial recovery may depend on the insurance carried by the person who caused the crash.
Montana law requires auto liability insurers to provide uninsured motorist coverage with qualifying policies unless the named insured rejects it. See Mont. Code Ann. § 33-23-201. The law provides an important opportunity for drivers to protect themselves, but it does not mean every Montana motorist actually has UM coverage. Drivers can reject it.
Underinsured motorist coverage is also worth discussing with your insurance agent. Do not assume you have it simply because you have an auto insurance policy or uninsured motorist coverage. Ask your insurer to confirm exactly which coverages you carry and the limits that apply.
The practical lesson is this: You cannot control whether another driver carries insurance, but you can take steps to protect yourself against that risk.
Montana's Minimum Insurance Limits May Not Be Enough
Montana's minimum required automobile liability limits are:
$25,000 for bodily injury to one person.
$50,000 for bodily injury per accident.
$20,000 for property damage per accident.
These minimums are not a guarantee that an injured person will be fully compensated. A single serious injury can generate substantial medical bills, lost wages, future treatment expenses, and other damages that exceed the available liability limits.
Consider a driver who suffers a broken leg, requires surgery, and misses months of work. This case would easily exceed the minimum auto insurance limits.
Or consider a collision involving several injured people, all seeking compensation from the same limited insurance policy. When multiple claims compete for limited coverage, the amount available to any one injured person may be even less than expected.
This is one reason it is important to look beyond the minimum requirements and evaluate your own insurance protection. UM and UIM limits that are too low may leave you exposed to significant financial losses.
How Much UM and UIM Coverage Should You Carry?
There is no single coverage limit that is right for everyone. Your needs may depend on your household finances, income, assets, health insurance, potential medical expenses, and the risks you face on the road.
When reviewing your policy, consider asking your insurance agent:
Do I currently have uninsured motorist coverage?
Do I have underinsured motorist coverage?
What are my limits for each type of coverage?
Are the limits sufficient to help protect my household in a serious accident?
What exclusions, conditions, or other policy provisions could affect a claim?
Do I have collision coverage to protect my vehicle if an uninsured driver damages it?
Ask for the cost of higher limits, too. You may find that increasing your protection is more affordable than you expected.
Review your coverage periodically, particularly when you buy a home, change jobs, add a driver to your household, or experience another major financial change.
What Should You Do After an Accident With an Uninsured Driver?
If you are injured in a collision and suspect the at-fault driver has no insurance or inadequate coverage, take the following steps when it is safe to do so:
Seek medical attention. Your health comes first, and medical documentation may also be important to your claim.
Report the accident as appropriate. Obtain the available crash report and preserve the other driver's information.
Document the evidence. Keep photographs, witness information, medical records, bills, and documentation of missed work.
Notify your insurer promptly. Follow the notice requirements in your policy and ask about applicable UM and UIM coverage.
Be careful with settlement decisions. A proposed settlement with the at-fault driver's insurer may affect your ability to pursue additional coverage. Before accepting a settlement or signing a release, consult your own insurer and consider obtaining legal advice.
An experienced Montana personal injury attorney can review the circumstances of the crash, identify potentially applicable insurance policies, and help you understand your options.
The Bottom Line: Protect Yourself From Drivers Who Don't Have Enough Insurance
You cannot guarantee that every driver sharing the road with you is responsible. You cannot force another motorist to carry adequate insurance, and you cannot know in advance whether a careless driver will cause a life-changing collision. But you can take steps to protect yourself.
Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage can provide an important layer of financial protection when another driver causes an accident and lacks the insurance necessary to compensate you for your injuries.
Don't wait until after a crash to discover that the person who hit you has no insurance—and that you have no coverage of your own to help.
Review your auto insurance policy today. Ask about UM and UIM coverage, understand your limits, and make an informed decision about protecting yourself and your family.
The right coverage cannot undo an accident, but it may make a meaningful difference in your ability to recover financially and move forward.