Car insurance can cover you for hit-and-run accidents. However, if you don’t have the correct coverage on your auto insurance policy, you may be out of luck if you’re the victim of a hit and run accident.
The last thing anybody wants is to be stuck with a damaged vehicle or medical injuries for an accident that they didn’t cause.
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What Insurance Coverage Do You Need For A Hit And Run?
First of all, it’s important to point out that there is no insurance policy out there that is going to protect you from a hit and run accident, except for your own policy.
If someone hits you and takes off, there’s no one that’s going to pay for the damage except your own insurance policy.
Collision Coverage
Collision coverage is the coverage that can help pay for damage to your vehicle should it be involved in a hit and run accident.
If you don’t have collision coverage, you’re gonna be out of luck. Your insurance company is gonna tell you “sorry, but we’re not paying for that, we feel bad for you but you have no coverage”.
If you do have collision coverage on your car insurance policy, all you’re going to have to do is pay your deductible, whether that’s $250, $500 or $1000 and your insurance company will step in and help you repair or replace your vehicle.
There are even some insurance companies that well wave your deductible if you were involved in a hit and run accident. Most of the time, for that to happen, you need a police report. You can’t just go and say, hey I was in a hit and run accident, please fix my vehicle.
However, just by having the collision coverage, the worst you’re gonna be out of is your deductible. So make sure you have that if you want to protect your vehicle in the case of a hit and run.
Uninsured/Underinsured Property Damage
In some states, you can also buy uninsured and under insured property damage coverage.
This this will generally do the same thing that collision coverage does. It’s most likely not going to carry deductible, if it does, it’s a very small deductible. Different states have different laws and guidelines as to if they will pay out for a hit and run accident, so check with your insurance carrier for specifics on your state; sometimes if you want them to pay out for a hit and run accident, you need to take certain steps.
Are Medical Injuries Covered From Hit And Run Accident?
Let’s now talk about your medical injuries if you’re injured because somebody hit you and took off. What coverage do you need on your own insurance policy to protect you when it comes to your medical injuries?
Uninsured/Underinsured Bodily Injury Coverage
This coverage protects you if somebody hits you and they don’t have any insurance or they don’t have enough insurance. It also protects you if they take off as part of a hit and run accident. In the event that this happens and you have medical injuries, this coverage can kick in and help pay for any of your medical injuries.
Medical Payments Coverage
The second coverage that you can add onto your car insurance policy to cover medical injuries from a hit and run is med pay or medical coverage payments.
This coverage pays out to you in the event that you’re in any accident. It doesn’t matter if it’s a hit and run, it doesn’t matter if it was your fault, it doesn’t matter if it was somebody else’s fault and they stuck around and you were able to use their insurance. In almost all scenarios, this coverage will kick in and help pay for any medical injuries that you sustain in the event that you are in a car accident or hit and run accident.
Does Liability Cover Hit And Run Accidents?
“I’m a perfect driver, I only need liability.”
“Nothing will happen to me or my car, I rarely drive anywhere.”
“I don’t need to pay extra for these coverages, I’ll never use them.”
We hear this all the time and it’s a bad way to think. You may be the perfect driver, but that doesn’t mean things can’t and wont go wrong!
There’s lots of crazy drivers out there that could hit you, no matter how good of a driver you are. If you’re carrying only liability coverage, you are going to be out of luck when it comes to getting your vehicle fixed and getting your medical injuries fixed.
Analyze your policy, analyze your coverage, make sure that if a hit and run accident is something that concerns you, that you have the coverage.