Critical developments in New Mexico uninsured motorist law could provide substantial assistance to people who have suffered serious personal injuries cause by uninsured or under-insured drivers. This could be true even for injured persons who have already settled their uninsured or under-insured motorists claim.
Uninsured motorist coverage is a type of insurance coverage which is purchased from your automobile insurance company. It protects you from damages which may be inflicted by an uninsured driver because your company will step-in and compensate you for all of the damages the uninsured motorist is legally liable for, at least up to the amount of coverage you purchased.
Under-insured motorist coverage is similar; it applies in situations where you have purchased more coverage to protect yourself than the amount of coverage carried by the person who hurt you. For example, let’s say that a New Mexico drunk driver causes an accident in which you are injured. Even if he has liability insurance, he may only carry the required minimum coverage of $25,000.00. But if you were hospitalized for even a few days, your medical bills could exceed that amount. And there are, of course, other types of losses, such as lost wages, pain and suffering, etc. This is why it is a good idea to purchase sufficient uninsured motorist coverage. If you have purchased more than $25,000.00 of protection for yourself, you would be able to ask your insurance company to step in and cover the damages which exceed the amount of the at-fault driver’s coverage-up to the amount of insurance you purchased for your own protection.
Many people do not even know if they have uninsured motorist coverage, although most do, or understand how it protects them.
The new development in New Mexico law have to do with rules governing how this protection must be offered and presented by insurance companies to their customers. Any person who has suffered serious damages which exceed the amount an at-fault driver’s insurance coverage should contact a lawyer if the amount of their own uninsured motorist coverage is less than the amount of their own liability coverage. For example, if you have $100,000.00 in liability coverage, but only $25,000.00 in uninsured/underinsured coverage, you should contact an attorney if you were injured by either an uninsured motorist or by a driver who carried insufficient insurance to cover your damages.