New York Auto Accident Lawyer Warns Motorists Not To Be Penny Wise And Pound Foolish When It Comes To Uninsured And Underinsured Motorist Coverage
New York auto accident lawyer Michael S. Levine issued a rugged warning today to all motorists in the State of New York to check their insurance policies to be certain they have adequate uninsured and supplemental underinsured coverage in the phase of a serious injury caused by an uninsured, underinsured, or hit - and - run driver.
“One of the hardest things in my profession, ” Levine uttered, “is to have to proclaim a client that the person who caused their accident either has no insurance, or only has the $25, 000 minimum liability coverage required by law in New York State.
“If the driver, ” Levine lengthened, “or the passengers, sustain catastrophic injuries as a termination of an accident with an underinsured vehicle, $25, 000 may not parallel scratch the surface in terms of adequately compensating the victim for his, or her, pain and suffering. ”
A bill pending in the New York State Assembly ( SO4705 ) would require motor vehicle insurance providers to care their insureds with uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage that is equal to the amount of the insured’s liability coverage. Fundamentally, an insured may have adequate liability coverage, only to find out, after an accident with either an uninsured or underinsured motorist, that he or filly has inadequate uninsured or underinsured coverage to fairly indemnify the driver for his or her injuries.
“If this bill passes it will help lift the shroud of question surrounding this important issue, ” Levine uttered. “But more would still need to be done by the carriers themselves to help make every motorist in the state aware of the benefits of adequate uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.
Levine explained that insurance companies, which are required by law to maintain their insured’s with at leading $25, 000 of uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, make a little profit on these supplemental programs, so finished is little, or no, business weakness to push the coverage on their policyholders.
“Any driver, ” Levine uttered, “who doesn’t have at rudimentary $100, 000 worth of uninsured / underinsured motorist coverage, if not more, is being penny wise and pound foolish. They need to know that these coverages are a limited bounteous expense in any automobile policy. ”
A infant provide for by the Insurance Research Council estimates that 14 % of drivers nationwide, and 7 % of drivers in New York State, are uninsured.
As like, Levine warns that motorists should never implant themselves, or their families, in a temperament where if serious injuries are stretched in a motor vehicle accident, all they can recover is $25, 000.
“Most drivers, ” he said, “assume wrongly that every driver on the road is sufficiently indiscernible by automobile insurance. That is not identical stuffy to being the case. Unfortunately, most people tumble that they didn’t buy enough UM / Number coverage when it’s too late, after they’ve been seriously injured in an accident by a driver who is either uninsured, or has only minimum insurance. ”
To further emphasize his point, Levine pointed to a case he single-minded recently involving a 16 - month - ancient boy who was working meed bit at a Jiffy Lube on Long Island.
“My client was struck by a driver who was pulling his car into a bay to have it serviced, ” Levine spoken. “The boy remote very serious injuries to his leg and needed invasive surgery. The car that struck him only had a $25, 000 policy. My client’s parent’s car only had $25, 000 in Aggregate coverage. In line after surgery, his leg injury could cause him problems for the rest of his life. But because his parents didn’t have enough underinsured coverage, my client was only able to gather $25, 000 for his injuries, which is a completely inadequate outcome. I gape these regrettable situations repeat themselves go and again. ”
