Uninsured Motorist Coverage and the “No Contact” Rule
In the event that you are involved in an accident and are unable to recover compensation from the party-that-caused-the-accident’s insurance company (called the “tortfeasor” in legal speak, but I will call them the negligent party to avoid being “that guy”) you need to make a claim with your insurance company under your “uninsured motorist coverage” (“UM” for short).
What is uninsured motorist coverage? I’m glad you asked. There is a comprehensive explanation by Forbes here but in short, it is coverage provided by auto insurance companies to their own insureds that can pay for medical bills, lost wages, and property damage. The extent of the coverage varies by policy, but fortunately in North Carolina, all auto insurance carriers, by law, must provide it with your auto policy. The reason why is because there are many drivers on the road that do not have insurance at all, and if you are involved in an accident with one of those drivers, the state does not want you left without recourse.
One such event that could leave you stumped is a hit-and-run accident, and the reason why is obvious. You’ve been hit, and the negligent party has run away. Unless the police are successful in tracking them down there is no way to make a claim to the negligent parties’ insurance company. Thank goodness you have UM coverage. The next question is how do you make a claim under that coverage? I will tell you.
Step 1: There must be a collision.
N.C. Gen. Stat. 20-279(b)(3) requires that there actually be a “collision” with another vehicle. In North Carolina, the insurance company does not have to compensate you for injuries to your body or damage to your car if the at-fault party never actually hit you with their car. Imagine this - you’re driving down I-40 East towards Wilmington for a fun weekend at the beach. All of the sudden a log dislodges from the transport truck a few hundred feet ahead. You hit the brakes and swerve to the right, but there’s not enough room on the shoulder for you to avoid the 45 foot pine tree barreling towards your car. Your vehicle hits the log and you swerve into the guardrails causing you whiplash and significant damage to the front end of your car. The transport truck - completely unaware of your near death experience - continues on down the highway to its destination.
Regardless of how tragic this is, this is not technically a “hit and run” under North Carolina law - at least not since the decision in N.C. Court of Appeals case Prouse v. Bituminous Cas. Corp., 222 N.C. App. 111, 730 S.E.2d 239 (2012).
Step 2: You must file a police report so an investigation can be conducted.
If someone’s vehicle has actually struck your vehicle, you should contact the police and file an accident report as quickly as possible. While it might seem like common sense, under the stress of the moment people often do not think very clearly. There are times after a hit-and-run where the police are never contacted for one reason or another. For your insurance to be obligated to pay under your uninsured motorist claim, North Carolina law ( N.C. Gen. Stat. 20-279(b)(3)(b)) requires that you contact the police and file a police report within 24 hours or as “soon as reasonably practicable thereafter.” In short, you don’t want to delay here. If you wait too long the insurance company may try to deny your claim.
Why is this? Well, because there is no third party to corroborate the accident, the potential for fraud is high. Without a requirement to conduct an investigation, anyone could make a claim under their UM coverage and receive money from their insurance company to repair their car, even if the damage was their own fault. The requirement that claimants have a police report filed and an investigation conducted helps to prevent that.
Step 3: Notify your insurance company within a “reasonable time”
Of course you need to contact your insurance company (both orally and in writing, for good measure) and make them aware that you were involved in an accident within “a reasonable time” after it occurred. What does a “reasonable” time actually mean? It differs depending on your situation and the circumstances involved, i.e. extent of your injuries, availability of a method of communication. My advice to clients is to make them aware within 48 hours. No reasonable insurance adjuster could argue that a 48-hour time period is an unreasonable amount of time to report an accident.
Conclusion
So to recap, (1) collision with another vehicle, (2) file a police report within 24 hours or very soon thereafter, and (3) contact your insurance company and provide notice, in writing. While following this three-step checklist is the first phase of making a claim to your auto insurance company, your journey is far from over. Further roadblocks lie ahead as the world of insurance is anything but straightforward. You should always contact an automobile accident lawyer when you are involved in an accident - delays can be costly to your health and your financial recovery.
