We recently represented two clients involved in a car accident. We sat down in our office with the driver and passenger. We asked the driver what type of insurance policy he had purchased, and specifically whether he had purchased “full tort” and whether he had purchased “uninsured motorist coverage.” Our driver client told us that he thought he purchased “full coverage” but beyond that he had no idea what we were talking about. The passenger in the car lived with his grandmother who owned her own car and had it insured. The passenger client did not own his own car. The accident occurred when the driver of another car crossed over the center line of traffic and hit the car in which our two clients were traveling, head on, causing injuries to both of them. The other driver, (the “at fault” driver), was uninsured, which meant that he did not carry auto insurance coverage on his car. He was also “judgment proof” meaning that even if we went to court and obtained a judgment against him, he owned no property or had no other insurance which could pay the court judgment. As it turned out, our client who was the driver client had purchased an automobile insurance policy which was “limited tort.” He also did not purchase “uninsured motorist coverage.” Our passenger client’s grandmother had purchased a full tort policy and had purchased uninsured motorist coverage. We were therefore able to make a… Continue reading
