Car accidents can be incredibly expensive, and victims deserve payment for their accidents. If the driver who hit you doesn’t have insurance to cover your injuries, it might hurt your ability to get compensated, which is why many states have rules making it illegal to drive without insurance.
In Pennsylvania, driving without insurance is a ticketable offense that can result in a registration suspension, plus fines and restoration fees. If you cause an accident while driving without insurance, you can also have your license suspended. While this cannot result in jail time itself, there are other serious ways it can affect liability in a car accident, potentially making it harder for victims to get their damages paid in full.
If you were injured in a car accident, contact our Philadelphia car accident lawyers at The Reiff Law Firm at (215) 709-6940 today.
Possible Penalties for Driving Without Insurance in Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, every driver is required to carry auto insurance. This is a very serious law because it helps ensure that people can be taken care of after an accident, and those who do not have insurance – or those who hurt people without having the necessary insurance – make it so the victims end up without compensation. As such, the penalties for driving without insurance can be severe, but they do not include jail time.
Under 75 Pa.C.S. § 1786, you can have your vehicle registration suspended if you are caught driving without insurance. You can opt for a $300 fine instead, but you can only do that once every 12 months. Otherwise, you have to accept the suspension. If your insurance was out of date for 31 days or more, then you actually have your plates and registration revoked.
Along with this, you can also have your license suspended.
To get your registration restored, you have to pay a fee and provide proof of a new insurance policy. They cannot end your suspension until you prove you are following the law again.
While all of this can be expensive and lead to serious disruptions in your driving ability, it cannot result in jail time unless there are other violations.
How Driving Without Insurance Hurts Car Accident Cases in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s insurance system is a kind of “choice no-fault system,” which often means that failing to have insurance hurts you more than anyone. However, there are also plenty of situations where it can be more trouble when the other driver has no insurance.
No-Fault Insurance
Pennsylvania drivers are required to carry insurance with first-party benefits that can protect them if they get hurt in a crash. This means that much of the time, the claim is going to be filed with your own insurance to get you paid after an accident. If you do not have insurance, then you will not be able to get payment from your own insurance company, and our Doylestown, PA car accident lawyers will have to seek out other avenues for coverage.
Full Tort vs. Limited Tort Insurance
Most drivers carry what we call “limited tort” insurance. This is a pretty standard no-fault policy where you give up your right to file a lawsuit – a “tort” – in court in exchange for first-party coverage. You only have to pay a deductible to your own insurance to get coverage up to your policy limits, but there is no coverage for pain and suffering.
If you want to sue the other driver and get additional damages, you have to meet certain injury thresholds listed in the policy. When you meet these standards, you can sue the other driver with the help of our attorneys. In court, you have to prove fault to get coverage, but you do not need to prove who caused the crash to get coverage from your own policy.
If you pay more for your insurance policy and elect a “full tort” policy, you have no restriction on your right to sue. This can get you pain and suffering in cases where you might not have met the serious injury threshold.
The important thing to understand about these policies is that when you have limited tort insurance, you mostly use your own insurance, but when you have full tort, you can go after the other driver.
The Other Driver’s Insurance
If the other driver has insurance, a claim or lawsuit against them can get you the additional pain and suffering and other damages you need above and beyond your insurance coverage in serious injury cases or in cases with a full tort policy. However, that only happens if they have insurance.
These laws discussed above require every driver to carry $15,000 per driver for injury ($30,000 per accident) and $5,000 for property damage. This usually kicks in to cover you after you have already gone through your insurance.
When the Other Driver Doesn’t Have Insurance
If the other driver does not have the required insurance, you cannot get covered for those additional damages. Instead, you will have to use your own insurance and then potentially sue them and collect from them personally instead of getting paid through their insurance.
How Uninsured Motorist Insurance Can Help with Your Claim in Pennsylvania
Many drivers have add-ons on their insurance policies that can give them additional protection in the case of an accident. Uninsured motorist coverage (UM) and underinsured motorist coverage (UIM) can help pay you if the other driver doesn’t have insurance or doesn’t have enough insurance.
If you have UM insurance, it can pay you what the other driver’s insurance would have paid you. Even though every driver is required to have insurance, having UM insurance is still a great idea for these rare situations where the driver who hit you was uninsured.
UIM helps cover you when the other driver’s insurance is too low. If the other driver has only the state minimum of $15,000 for injury and $5,000 for property damage, you might not get everything covered. Your own UIM can make up for the difference and help you get the rest of your damages covered.
Call Our Pennsylvania Car Accident Attorneys Today
For a free case review, call (215) 709-6940 for a free case review with the Chester, PA car accident lawyers at The Reiff Law Firm.
