Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage activates when the other person involved in the accident is uninsured. They cover your injuries, lost wages and related costs. This also covers hit-and-run accidents where the other driver absconds. According to the Insurance Research Council, the number of uninsured drivers in the United States was 14.0 percent in 2022. This was according to a study that occurred in October 2023 involving claim frequencies of significant automobile insurers. As of 2019, the uninsurance rate was 11.1%. Another study by VTI in Sweden (2006-2010) indicated that uninsured drivers had a greater probability of involving themselves in accidents by 34 percent. The research sampled the accident rates of insured and uninsured motorists in the same traffic conditions and accepted risk differences when their accident rates were compared. Uninsured Motorist Coverage decreases this financial load.

How Does Uninsured Motorist Coverage Work?

Here are five steps to  working with Uninsured Motorist Coverage:
  1. Claim Filing Process: Contact your insurer directly following an accident with an uninsured motorist. Send the police report, car crash photos, official medical records, and witness details. Your insurance provider evaluates the documents and weighs your case accordingly.
  2. Coverage Triggers: Uninsured Motorist cover is used when another motorist is the cause of an accident, has no insurable cover, has insufficient cover, or absconds. Then your insurer indemnifies you against your physical injuries or the loss of your vehicle, according to the policy.
  3. Other Coverage Coordination: Basic treatment is initially consumed through Personal Injury Protection or health insurance. After these limits are exhausted, Uninsured Motorist coverage takes effect. This covers additional costs such as treatment, long stay, or lost income in cases of injury.
  4. Coverage Limits: Insurers pay only the amounts listed in your policy. In many states, Uninsured Motorist limits are capped at the level of your liability limits. As an example, when the liability is $30,000, Uninsured Motorist payments cannot be more than this $30,000.
  5. Payout period: The process begins one to two days after the crash. The insurance company makes its investigation and releases funds. Claims typically end within a number of weeks or at most six months, according to complexity.

What are the Types of Uninsured Motorist Coverage?

Here are the three types of Uninsured Motorist Coverage:
  1. Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury (UMBI): UMBI pays medical expenses, hospital costs, rehabilitation and missed wages due to uninsured motorists. It covers you against injury expenses when the vehicle driver at fault is not covered by liability insurance.
  2. Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (UMPD): UMPD covers an uninsured motorist who damages your vehicle or property. It offers up to policy limits to repair or replace bodies in case of accidents with uninsured motorists.
  3. Underinsured Motorist Coverage UIM: UIM comes in when the policy insuring the faulty driver does not meet your injury or damage expenses. It reimburses the gap between what they cover and what you pay.

What Does Uninsured Motorist Coverage Include?

Here are the six costs Uninsured Motorist Coverage includes:
  1. Bodily Injury Coverage: This includes your medical expenses, as well as those of passengers injured by an uninsured driver. It covers hospital stays, surgery, rehabilitation, and doctor appointments and assists in cutting down out-of-pocket expenses following an accident with an uninsured motorist.
  2. Lost Wages: Lost wages coverage is used to cover the wages that you lose because you cannot work after an accident. It covers the lost wages in the recovery time, which keeps the finances in stable condition when the driver who caused your accident is uninsured.
  3. Pain and Suffering: Compensation for pain and suffering includes the physical suffering and emotional tiredness following an accident. It consists of mental distress, angst, and diminished quality of life due to getting injured by an uninsured or fleeing motorist.
  4. Funeral Costs: Funeral expenses coverage covers the expenses in case there is a fatal accident involving an uninsured driver. This involves burial, cremation, and other items to mitigate the monetary burdens left on surviving family members.
  5. Hit-and-Run Protection: Hit-and-run coverage applies where the other driver involved abandons the accident scene. It also includes the expense of injury and property damage in case the other driver is not found or identified.
  6. Passenger Coverage: Passenger coverage provides UM coverage to everyone in your car. They pay their medical expenses, wages lost, and pain and suffering in the event of a crash caused by an uninsured driver.

How to Choose the Right Uninsured Motorist Coverage?

Here are the five key points to keep in mind while selecting Uninsured Motorist Coverage:
  1. Review State Requirements: Minimum uninsured motorists are required by law in each state. Not all states demand bodily injury alone; some also demand property damage. Visit the site of the Department of Insurance of your state to learn about legal requirement limits to avoid legal liability.
  2. Test Your Risk Factors: Look at the local numbers of uninsured drivers and accidents. A larger number of uninsured drivers or accidents in certain states poses a larger financial risk to you. The states across the United States had 14 percent of uninsured drivers in 2022, but differences in the percentages existed across the country.
  3. Check Your Current Coverage. Look out for gaps in your health and collision insurance. Health insurance plans pay medical expenses but not wages lost and pain and suffering. Collision does cover vehicle damage but not injuries, and the UM is therefore crucial to complete protection.
  4. Compare Costs and Gains: Compare the cost of adding UM coverage to your policy with possible out-of-pocket expenses. Greater limits cause higher premiums and lower financial risk. Examine your budget and tolerance of risk to select the best protection possible without paying exorbitant prices.
  5. Think Vehicle Value: Cars worth high value need appropriate property damage coverage. UM property damage assists in repairing or replacing the vehicle after a crash with an uninsured driver. Older vehicles do not require much coverage because repair costs are lower than the premiums.

Who Needs Uninsured Motorist Coverage?

Here are the six main groups need Uninsured Motorist Coverage:
  1. Drivers in High-Uninsured Areas: Uninsured drivers are at high rate in states such as Mississippi (29.4%) and Michigan (25.5%) (IRC, 2023). Motorists in these states are at a higher risk of financial risk of a crash with uninsured motorists, and they enjoy better UM coverage.
  2. Professional City Drivers: Hit-and-run and crash frequency are higher on urban roads. Major cities with a high population such as Los Angeles and Chicago, registered more hit-and-run claims and this exposes daily drivers whose routes mostly traverse busy intersections and small parking areas.
  3. HVV Owners: Expensive cars are expensive to fix or replace. Owners of newer cars or luxury vehicles risk greater financial exposure in an uninsured collision costing them more to repair out-of-pocket, which is why UM property damage coverage is important.
  4. Uninsured Motorists: Collision coverage fixes your car following accidents. Without this, UM property damage closes the gap when you get hit by uninsured drivers. This renders UM a necessity for drivers with liability-only paying on older or paid-off cars.
  5. Multiple Drivers Families: All members of households listed on the policy are insured under UM coverage. Families with teenagers or multiple drivers often have increased odds of accidents, making extra coverage less costly in a variety of driving profiles and risk levels.
  6. Daily Commuters and Long Distance Drivers: The longer the time on a highway or other congested routes, the more accident exposure. Long distance drivers, commuters are at greater danger of being involved in a crash with an uninsured driver, particularly in areas of high traffic volume or states with large percentages of uninsured motorists.

How to Get Uninsured Motorist Coverage in Houston?

In Houston, Texas, you can find an agent to purchase Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) coverage by contacting a licensed auto insurance agent, or internet-based auto insurance provider online. Texas statutes mandate that all auto insurers provide UM/UIM coverage with any liability policies. This covers any situation that involves uninsured or underinsured drivers, and hit and run cases. But in order to have a policy covering this you have to agree in writing. When selecting coverage, it is necessary to select limits that are appropriate to you. Those are usually in increments of \$5,000 and again, are equal to your liability coverage. Stacked coverage makes you more secure when you already have several cars.