Industry Knowledge

What If the Other Driver's Insurance Is Not Enough to Cover Your Injuries?

A serious crash can leave you with damages that go beyond what the at-fault driver's insurance policy will pay. When that driver's limits are exhausted and your damages exceed them, you may not be out of options. Your own underinsured motorist coverage, often called UIM coverage, is designed for this exact situation. The Law Office of Bobby Udall evaluates UIM claims in every serious case the office accepts, because this coverage can make a real difference in how an injury claim is resolved.

What Underinsured Motorist Coverage Does

Underinsured motorist coverage is part of your own insurance picture, not the other driver's. If the at-fault driver's limits are exhausted and your damages exceed those limits, your UIM coverage fills the gap up to your own limits. In other words, the claim looks first to the coverage of the driver who caused the harm, and then, when that coverage runs out, to the UIM limits you carry yourself.

That structure matters because a serious injury can produce damages larger than another driver's policy will cover. When the gap appears, UIM coverage is the layer that can respond, up to the limits on your own policy.

Why Your Own Limits Matter

Because UIM coverage fills the gap only up to your own limits, the limits you carry set the ceiling on what that coverage can do. Stacking those limits was a buying decision that pays off now, at the moment a claim actually depends on them. Choices made when a policy is purchased can feel abstract at the time, but they become concrete when an at-fault driver's coverage proves too small.

This is why a careful review of an injury claim looks at more than the other driver's policy. Your own policy, and the UIM limits written into it, are part of the full picture of available coverage.

How the Gap Shows Up in a Serious Case

The shortfall usually becomes clear as the size of the damages is understood. If the total damages from the injury exceed the at-fault driver's limits, and those limits are exhausted, the remaining gap is where a UIM claim comes in. Until the damages and the other driver's limits are both known, it can be hard to tell whether UIM coverage will be needed at all.

That is one reason serious cases benefit from a complete evaluation rather than a quick assumption that the other driver's policy is the only source of recovery. Overlooking your own UIM coverage can mean overlooking coverage that was purchased for this situation.

What an Evaluation Looks At

Evaluating a UIM claim involves comparing the at-fault driver's exhausted limits against the full extent of your damages, and then measuring the gap against your own UIM limits. It also involves reading your policy as it was actually written, since the limits you selected control how far the coverage can go.

Bobby Udall's office evaluates UIM claims in every serious case it accepts. If you are dealing with injuries and are unsure whether the other driver's insurance will be enough, you can reach The Law Office of Bobby Udall at 801.980.7777 to discuss your situation.

When another driver's insurance is not enough, your own underinsured motorist coverage may fill the gap up to your limits. A careful evaluation of both policies is how that gap gets identified and addressed in a serious injury case.

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