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In a typical Georgia car accident, the at-fault driver’s liability insurance pays for your injuries and damages. But what happens when that driver has no insurance at all — or carries only the bare state minimum that does not come close to covering your medical bills?
This is more common than people expect. Georgia only requires drivers to carry $25,000 in bodily injury coverage per person, and a serious injury can blow past that limit quickly.
Fortunately, Georgia law gives you a safety net through your own policy. A Georgia car accident lawyer can help you tap the right coverage and avoid the mistakes that let insurers deny these claims.
Georgia requires every registered vehicle to carry at least $25,000 in bodily injury liability coverage per person, $50,000 per accident, and $25,000 in property damage liability.
Those minimums are low. A single emergency-room visit, surgery, or extended treatment can easily exceed $25,000, leaving you exposed if the at-fault driver carries nothing more than the legal minimum.
Under Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 33-7-11), auto insurers must offer uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, though you can reject it in writing. If you did not reject it, you likely have it.
Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage applies when the at-fault driver has no insurance at all — and it also covers hit-and-run accidents where the driver who caused the crash is never identified.
Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage applies when the at-fault driver has some insurance, but not enough to cover your full losses.
Georgia allows a form of UIM known as add-on (or stacking) coverage. With add-on coverage, your UM/UIM limits sit on top of the at-fault driver’s limits rather than being reduced by them.
For example, if the at-fault driver has $25,000 in coverage and you carry $100,000 in add-on UIM, you could potentially access up to $125,000 in total. With the older ‘reduced’ type of coverage, your limit would instead be offset by the at-fault driver’s payment.
Which type you have depends on how your policy was written, so it is worth checking your declarations page carefully.
Call the police and get an official report, even if the other driver begs you not to — the report documents the crash and the other driver’s lack of insurance.
Notify your own insurer promptly so you can open a UM/UIM claim, but be careful about giving recorded statements before you understand your rights.
Remember that your own insurance company is not automatically on your side in a UM claim; it acts much like an opposing insurer, so do not assume its first offer reflects what your claim is truly worth.
Probably. Georgia insurers must offer UM/UIM coverage, and you only lose it if you rejected it in writing. Check your policy’s declarations page or ask your agent to confirm.
Yes. In Georgia, UM coverage generally applies when the at-fault driver flees and is never identified, treating the unknown driver as uninsured.
You should not be penalized for making a UM claim when you were not at fault, though policies vary. The protection you paid for exists precisely for this situation.
You can, but uninsured drivers often have few assets to collect from, which is exactly why your own UM/UIM coverage is usually the more reliable source of compensation.
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