<p>
</p>
<p>That should be illegal. It isn’t much better than being uninsured and shouldn’t be allowed. Seriously, anyone living in a state that allows those low limits of liability should be writing to their representatives. It’s appalling.</p>
<p>In our state, I think 5,000 is allowed if you can believe it.</p>
<p>
Not an insignificant detail. In New Jersey, if you are a passenger in an accident, it is your very own automobile insurance - not the driver’s, not the other at fault guy who hit you - that is responsible for your medical bills. I found this very bizarre, as do most people who learn about this, but that is how it is done in NJ. I don’t know how many states (if any) do it this way.</p>
<p>Those limits sound ridiculously low to me, too. alwaysamom is sure right in post 21(“should be illegal”). But the insured’s coverage cannot be blamed on Progressive, or on Flo. They are only offering a product. It was the individual that chose such low coverage, and state legislation that permitted it.
My best wishes for a complete recovery, and my best wishes for proper payments without a lawsuit.</p>
<p>As you will have noted from various replies (and presumably in consultation with the lawyer you’ve now retained) your rights and options are varied and not obvious. You may be entitled to have your medical bills paid by the other driver’s insurance, your driver’s insurance, or your insurance. You may be entitled to recover sums above the other driver’s insurance limits from the other driver, from an underinsured driver provision in your own insurance (that would be the case in California) and possibly from the insurer of your driver. The only person qualified to steer you through the thickets is a personal injury lawyer in your state. You’ve retained one (now) but I’m concerned about the fact that you didn’t so so until prompted. You <strong>really</strong> needed a lawyer, and you should have known that from the start.</p>
<p>Reluctance to hire a lawyer when you have been injured, financially or physically, by the negligence or misconduct of another isn’t noble - it’s stupid and irresponsible. </p>
<p>Yes, irresponsible. People should be held accountable for their actions. An unwillingness to do so encourages reckless and irresponsible conduct. A person who has six cars and not enough insurance to cover routine medical bills is reckless. She has consciously gambled your potential financial ruin against her own desire not to pay (modest) insurance premiums. (You should be getting an eyeful of the cost of even seemingly simple medical care by now.) Why should you reward that behavior? </p>
<p>I sense a widespread belief that hiring a lawyer when you’ve been harmed by the actions of another is somehow shameful. While the spread of that opinion is handy for wrongdoers, it’s not a good thing for our society. Folks rage about the largely fictitious problem of “frivolous litigation” but you’ll hear nary a peep about the millions of Americans injured or cheated out of money and left without recourse by our legal system - in many cases because the system provides them with no practical remedy, but in many others because they were simply too proud to hire a lawyer or didn’t do so until it was too late.</p>
<p>I hope this experience is a wakeup call for you and your friends and family. Your legal rights are only meaningful if you are willing to defend them.</p>
<p>P.S. I am a lawyer, but not a personal injury lawyer. When my son was injured in a car crash I advised him to hire - and pay - a personal injury lawyer to represent him. (Yes, I do put my money where my mouth is.)</p>
<p>Even if people are supposed to have liability insurance by law, there will still be millions of drivers driving without it. It is wise to carry as much uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM) insurance as you can comfortably afford, and ‘stack’ the limits if you are allowed to by your insurance carrier. If you are hit by an uninsured driver, the UM coverage kinda like allows you to sue yourself! UM coverage is especially important if you have poor or no medical insurance of your own. If UM comes in to play…you really need your own lawyer to go after your own insurance carrier to get the UM coverage money.</p>
<p>I was surprised a new poster opened this thread again, after 2 years. Case slowly moving forward. I did hire a lawyer.</p>
<p>the sad part is that the driver of new SUV had minimal coverage, and the $10,000 she had was used up in a day. My insurance company is going after the driver of the car I was in, though he did nothing wrong. The bad driver ran a red light. It seems a game to me, as that driver is completely off the hook. My friend, who was driving, and I each have good coverage.</p>
<p>please use old threads for informational purposes only.</p>