Lancaster Car Accident Lawyers Explain Buying Car Insurance in South Carolina: What You Need to Know and How to Protect Your Family
For most people, automobile insurance is not something they think about every day. There are really two instances when most people think about automobile insurance. The first time is when they are buying an automobile insurance policy because South Carolina law requires a minimum amount of insurance. Most people try to get the lowest premium payment despite it often meaning the lowest coverage. The second is after a motor vehicle accident and automobile insurance is actually needed to pay for medical bills, lost wages, and other damages. People usually wish they had paid more on their premiums so they had the coverage that they needed. This is why our Lancaster car accident lawyers hope to add a third time people consider car insurance in South Carolina.
Here at David Blackwell Law, we know how devastating even low-speed motor vehicle crashes can be for victims and their families. The physical injuries, emotional harm, and financial repercussions can have a huge impact on a victim and his or her family. This is why our experienced Lancaster car accident attorneys offer FREE consultations to evaluate your claim, the applicable law, and advise you how we could help. We also pay the upfront costs and disbursements of litigation, which are only paid after we recover compensation for you in a settlement, verdict, or other award. The same is true of our attorney’s fees, which are only a percentage of what we recover for you. This means there is no upfront cost or financial risk to work with our personal injury law firm.
Is South Carolina a No-Fault or Fault Automobile Insurance State?
States have enacted either a no-fault or fault system of automobile insurance. No-fault states mean that a victim turns right to their insurer for reimbursement of medical bills and lost wages, no matter who may have been at fault for the crash. The insurance carriers will later determine who was at fault and seek indemnification/contribution from the negligent motorist (meaning the defendant will end up paying at the end).
Other states have a fault-based system, meaning that the party who is “at fault” for the accident will be responsible for paying a victims medical bills, lost wages, and conscious pain and suffering.
South Carolina is a fault state, meaning the defendant will pay for the motor vehicle accident damages. While this seems simple under the law that a negligent party will pay medical bills, it is unfortunately not always the case. Since South Carolina is a comparative fault state, even if a defendant is 70% liable for a crash, the defendant’s insurance carrier may try to argue that you are only entitled to 70% of your damages. Sometimes the insurance carrier will even try to get your percentage of fault even higher in an effort to lower the amount owed by their client.
Thus, even though South Carolina is a fault state and it sounds like an easy process, always have an experienced Lancaster car accident lawyer to protect your rights to compensation.
Understanding Insurance Coverage in South Carolina
There are minimum automobile insurance requirements in South Carolina that all motorists must obtain or face stiff vehicle and traffic code violations. These requirements include the following:
- $25,000 per person per accident bodily injury coverage
- $50,000 total per accident bodily injury coverage
- $25,000 property damage per accident coverage, and
- $25,000/$50,000/$25,000 uninsured motorists coverage which mirrors the other minimums.
The failure to obtain these minimum coverage figures could result in traffic offenses. In a serious motor vehicle accident, the failure to obtain this coverage could also subject a defendant to personal liability for a crash.
Additional Coverage Options
There are two important coverage options that all drivers should obtain and maximize. These are uninsured motorist insurance (UM) and underinsured motorist insurance (UIM). They are extra policies or riders on your coverage that are used only to help you and your family in a collision, meaning these monthly premiums are only spent on you and your family.
These coverages come into play when a driver is uninsured or underinsured. They are used to fill gaps in your compensation.
Uninsured Motorist Coverage
Each driver must already maintain UM for the state minimums. But it is beneficial to have additional coverage to protect you and your family above the minimums. Our Lancaster car accident lawyer recommends obtaining as much coverage as financially comfortable and possible. This will help to protect your family in a crash.
For example, if a defendant has no insurance and your medical bills are $40,000, your required $25,000 will still leave $15,000 of medical bills for you and no room for lost wages or pain and suffering. However, if you purchased additional UM for $50,000, you would be able to cover the medical bills and not have out-of-pocket expenses.
Underinsured Motorist Coverage
When the defendant does not have enough coverage to handle your damages, UIM can help bridge the gap. This is a policy rider meant to offer additional coverage above what is already there.
For example, if a defendant has $50,000 in coverage but you have $125,000 in damages, the defendant’s policy will leave you with $75,000 in out-of-pocket damages and losses. But if you have UIM for $200,000, you would be able to cover that additional $75,000.
Our Lancaster car accident attorneys recommend obtaining as much UIM as possible.
Injured in a Car Wreck? Unsure What Automobile Coverage You Have? Ask Our Law Offices for Help
If you or a loved one were seriously injured in a South Carolina car accident, call our Lancaster car accident lawyers for a FREE consultation to learn how we can help you. Here at David Blackwell Law, we have dedicated ourselves to representing victims and their families after life-changing and catastrophic personal injury accidents.
