Crashing after trying to brake too late is always devastating. As the initial shock of the collision wears off, panic sets in when the other driver says those dreaded words, “I do not have insurance.”

This scenario plays out on roads every day. Although California law requires drivers to carry minimum auto liability insurance, many motorists continue to drive uninsured. If you have ever been involved in an accident with a damaged bumper or some unanticipated ER costs, it can be frustrating to realize that the at-fault driver may still be legally responsible even if they have no insurance.

Do not worry if you end up in this challenging legal situation. There are choices to make, but time is of the essence. The following information is your step-by-step guide to handling an uninsured motorist claim and safeguarding your financial well-being.

At the Scene, Call 911 and Decline Promises of Payment Later

The seconds after an accident are crucial. Although it may be normal to feel shaken, it is vital to take the appropriate steps immediately at the scene to protect your legal and financial rights.

An uninsured driver may ask you not to involve the police because they could face legal and financial consequences, like their driver's license being suspended. They could offer a handshake agreement to pay for the damage to your vehicle later.

Do not accept these offers. When an uninsured driver is involved in an accident and flees the scene, they almost always disappear. They can:

  • Give you a fake phone number
  • Provide a fake name
  • Simply block your calls

Without documentation, you will have to pay for your own auto repairs and medical expenses.

If anyone is injured, call 911 immediately. Even if police do not respond, report the collision as required and document the incident thoroughly. Even if you do not think you have been injured, adrenaline can temporarily mask injuries like whiplash that may not appear until hours or days later.

Furthermore, request that a formal police report be filed. This document is very important. The police report will usually be needed by your insurance provider to document the circumstances of the accident and help support your uninsured motorist (UM) claim.

Please note: do not chase an uninsured driver if he/she panics and attempts to leave the scene. If not, make an effort to recall or note the license plate number and the vehicle's make and model, and remember to call the police immediately. Many uninsured motorist policies also cover qualifying hit-and-run accidents if the policy requirements are met, meaning that if the crash is reported to the police right away, you should be able to pursue a claim for the accident through your own policy's UM coverage.

Gather Strong Evidence Before Vehicles Are Moved

Your next step is to preserve the scene after calling the police. If the driver is uninsured, you bear the burden of proving the crash. Your own insurer will rely heavily on the evidence you gather to pay the claim. Statements of fact before anyone leaves or moves their vehicle will help ensure that your own insurance carrier will honor your claim.

Exchange the legally required information, but avoid arguing about fault. Grab your smartphone and start taking comprehensive pictures and videos right away. Be sure to capture:

  • The uninsured driver — Ask to see the driver's license and vehicle information, and photograph the information. If the driver refuses, attempt to take his/her picture if it is safe to do so
  • The vehicles — Take photos of the license plates, the vehicle identification number (VIN) on the driver-side dashboard, and the exact locations of both cars with respect to the road
  • The damage — From close range and from a distance, document all property damage that occurred in the crash, including skid marks, debris on the asphalt, and any road signs or traffic signals that aided in documenting the manner in which the collision occurred.

In a two-vehicle accident involving an uninsured driver, the at-fault driver may later try to rewrite the events of the crash to evade liability and create a conflicting account of the collision. Independent third-party witnesses are priceless, as they have no vested interest.

Look around for pedestrians, other cars, or local commercial employees who witnessed the impact. Request for their name, phone number, and a brief description of what they saw. This should be done as soon as possible, since others tend to leave once the situation calms down.

For those with a dashcam or who have access to a nearby business with a surveillance system, the video will be the best evidence of the event. Unfortunately, many newer dashcams record on a loop. If your dashcam records on a loop, preserve the footage immediately by saving the file or removing the memory card so that if the camcorder is left on, important video footage cannot be erased. This requires you to pull over, turn off the camera, or remove the memory card right away to preserve the moments immediately before and after the impact.

File an SR-1 Form at the California DMV Within 10 Days

If an uninsured driver hits you, you will likely just be glad to be alive. However, your obligations do not stop after the accident. You must also navigate the administrative requirements set by state law. This can easily turn a stressful situation into a bureaucratic nightmare if it is not done correctly and promptly.

California Vehicle Code (CVC) Section 16000 requires that any driver who is involved in a collision on a public road must report the accident to the DMV if it meets the reporting requirements. If the accident satisfies any of the following conditions, you must complete and submit Form SR-1 (Report of Traffic Accident Occurring in California) to the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) within 10 days of the accident:

  • If the accident caused some type of physical harm, regardless of its severity.
  • There was one fatality in the collision.
  • Property damage to any person exceeds $1,000.

With today's labor rates and parts prices, almost any fender bender that needs to be taken to a shop will cost over $1,000.

Filing a police report at the scene does not meet this requirement. The DMV uses a separate financial responsibility tracking system, and the SR-1 form must be submitted separately.

The SR-1 form must include your auto insurance information to establish proof that you are financially responsible in accordance with state laws. You will enter the other driver's information and tick the box indicating that the driver is not covered.

Filing the form allows the DMV to evaluate the motorist who caused the accident's compliance with California's financial responsibility laws. The DMV may suspend the driver's license for failure to meet California's financial responsibility requirements.

Section 16000 of the CVC applies to all motorists involved in a reportable crash. You are always responsible for filing the SR-1 form, regardless of who is at fault.

The DMV is legally entitled to suspend your driving privileges if you fail to file the report within 10 days. Failing to do this is a mistake that could cost you your driving privileges and make it more difficult to recover from your uninsured motorist insurance claim. Submit the SR-1 on time to protect your driving privileges.

File a Claim Under Your Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury (UMBI) Coverage

If an uninsured driver caused the accident, there is no liability insurance policy against which to file a claim. That is when Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury (UMBI) coverage is your main financial safety belt.

UMBI coverage effectively steps into the place of the uninsured at-fault driver's liability insurance. Your insurance provider serves as the surrogate company. It pays for covered damages under your policy, rather than getting damages from the other driver's insurance carrier.

As per your UMBI policy, your insurance company will have to compensate you for covered damages up to your policy limits if the uninsured driver is legally liable. This includes:

  • Medical expenses — Ambulance costs, ER visits, surgeries, prescription medications, and ongoing physical therapy or chiropractic care
  • Lost wages — Income you lost while you were recovering from your injuries and reduced earning capacity because of the accident, causing a partial disability
  • General damages — General damages compensate for physical pain, emotional distress, and other non-economic losses

California law generally requires insurers to offer uninsured motorist coverage, although policyholders may reject it in writing. The policyholder, however, is not required to carry the coverage.

You may reject this coverage by signing a written waiver, but you cannot do so verbally on the phone with your insurance agent. To decline UMBI, you must sign a written, official waiver.

You can check whether you have this coverage by reviewing your policy's Declarations Page (the summary sheet that lists your coverage and premiums). Check for an insurance policy provision that is usually listed as "UMBI," "Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury," or "UM/UIM. If limits are listed beside it and it is still in force, you are protected.

UMBI is an important safety net, but it has financial limits. Only compensation up to the amount and type of coverage listed on your declarations page will be available.

Many policies provide UM limits that match the liability limits selected by the insured, although this varies by policy; for example, $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident, if you have standard coverage. If the medical expenses and lost wages total $45,000, but the individual UMBI cap is $30,000, the insurance company will only be responsible for the $30,000 UMBI cap. If you do not pursue other recovery options, you would generally be responsible for any losses exceeding your available insurance unless another source of recovery exists.

Use Collision Coverage or UMPD to Repair Your Vehicle

Your health is the most important thing, but adding the stress of a damaged vehicle only makes an already difficult situation worse. Without insurance, repairing your vehicle will require navigating California's insurance rules.

If you do not have standard collision coverage, you may need to use Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (UMPD) coverage instead. California law provides limited uninsured motorist property damage (UMPD) coverage when the at-fault driver is identified and uninsured and provides that, when the at-fault driver is identified as uninsured, UMPD will directly pay to repair or replace your vehicle.

California law limits UMPD benefits to $3,500, and caps the compensation UMPD can receive at $3,500.

With today's sophistication in automotive engineering, a minor rear-end collision involving bumper sensors, cameras, and bodywork can easily exceed this limit. If your repairs cost $8,000 but your policy only covers $3,500, you are responsible for the remaining $4,500 unless you have other coverage. Moreover, UMPD generally does not apply when the at-fault driver cannot be identified.

If you are looking for full coverage, then it is better to go with your regular collision coverage. Unlike UMPD, collision insurance will pay to repair your car, whether the other driver is insured or not, and regardless of who was at fault, subject to your policy terms.

It can easily cover catastrophic damage or a total loss because it covers repair costs up to the vehicle's actual cash value, up to the limit of your policy. The drawback is that, at this early stage, you will have to pay your deductible initially, which may later be recoverable depending on the circumstances (usually $500 or $1,000), and the insurance company will pay the rest of the repair costs.

To save yourself that out-of-pocket cost, your insurance policy includes a feature that may eliminate your deductible in qualifying uninsured motorist collisions. It is called a Collision Deductible Waiver (CDW).

When you have collision coverage and a CDW on your policy, your insurance company honors your deductible waiver clause if you are hit by an uninsured driver. This may significantly reduce your out-of-pocket expenses for auto recovery:

  • All repairs over $3,500 are covered under your collision policy
  • The CDW will lower your out-of-pocket expenses to $0

To successfully trigger a claim for CDW in California:

  • There must generally be physical contact between the vehicles
  • The insured must not be held responsible for the accident
  • The uninsured driver must be identified

Evaluate Alternative Options If You Declined UM Coverage

Opting out of Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage is a typical choice to reduce monthly premiums. But being injured and dealing with vehicle damage after an accident caused by an uninsured driver without this particular protection is a very complicated financial problem. If you do not have a UM policy, you will need to find another way to cover your medical bills and losses.

If you choose not to have UM coverage, but you choose to have Medical Payments (MedPay) coverage with your auto policy, you will have coverage for medical expenses immediately after the accident for bodily injuries. MedPay, or no-fault coverage, is an optional coverage that pays out regardless of who caused the accident.

It will not pay for pain and suffering or lost wages, but it will cover your ambulance costs, doctor visits, surgery, and X-rays. MedPay is optional coverage available from many California insurers, with a minimum limit of $1,000, although most drivers carry policies ranging from $2,000 to $5,000. This coverage features no deductibles, no co-pays, no hassle, and is a great asset to use for medical bills right after a crash.

If a major medical trauma quickly drains away the minor auto policy limits, then your health insurance may help cover eligible treatment after applicable auto insurance benefits have been exhausted by your insurance coverage. Your health plan generally covers medically necessary treatment, subject to your policy, emergency stabilization, and continued medical treatment related to an auto accident. Your health plan must provide emergency stabilization and continued medical treatment after an auto accident.

Remember, if you take out private health insurance, you are still responsible for paying your usual deductibles, out-of-pocket maximums, co-pays for specialists, and other out-of-pocket costs. Furthermore, if the compensation is recovered after a court case, you may assert reimbursement or subrogation rights, depending on your policy and applicable law, for the money recovered to cover the amount you received for your medical treatment.

You may still pursue a civil lawsuit against the at-fault driver in court for your medical expenses, emotional anguish, and property damage. If your damages are less than $12,500, then you can do so on your own in the small claims court system.

If you have won a court judgment, it might be easy to win, but it may be harder to recover.

Drivers who drive without auto insurance are probably not able to afford the premiums. In a legal sense, these people are sometimes called judgment-proof. Just because a judge rules in your favor and issues a financial judgment, the defendant may have no real estate, valuable liquid assets, or stable income that can be garnished. Even if they do not have any money, a judgment cannot create assets that the defendant does not have, and you will end up with an uncollectible judgment and out-of-pocket legal bills.

Find a Personal Injury Attorney Near Me

Being involved in a collision with an uninsured driver can effectively stop your life in its tracks and result in a wrecked car, escalating medical bills, and a fight with your insurance provider. Recovering after an uninsured motorist accident can be overwhelming. An experienced attorney can help guide you through police reports, DMV requirements, insurance claims, and arbitration. Acting promptly can help protect both your legal rights and your financial recovery.

If your accident involves additional legal issues like a hit-and-run investigation, uninsured-driver disputes, or significant injuries, consult an attorney as soon as possible. Safeguard your future right now. Contact the Los Angeles Car Accident Attorney today at 424-237-3600 and schedule a consultation to discuss your uninsured motorist claim.