Did the driver who hit you have no insurance at all?

We are sorry this happened to you. Finding out the person who hurt you has no insurance can feel like a dead end. It is not.

Are you in an emergency right now?

• Check yourself and others for injuries, breathing, and bleeding.
• Call 911 if anyone is hurt or the road is not safe.
• Move away from traffic if you can do it safely.
• Get medical care even if you feel okay. Some injuries hide for days.
• This page is for after you are safe.

This page covers uninsured motorist claims and what to do right now. We are the injured person's advocate. We connect you with a lawyer who handles cases like yours, so you get the full settlement your recovery deserves. Always free. Talk to an advocate. We usually reply within minutes, at most one business day.

This situation is more common than most people expect. In 2023, about one in three drivers nationwide (33.4%) were either uninsured or underinsured, and roughly 15.4% of drivers, about one in seven, carried no insurance at all. Rates vary widely by state, from about 5.7% uninsured in Maine to 28.2% in Mississippi (Insurance Research Council (IRC)).

Why your own insurance policy becomes the practical "defendant"

In a typical car crash claim, you file against the other driver's insurance. When that driver has no insurance, there is nothing to file against. This is where uninsured motorist (UM) coverage comes in, and it changes the whole shape of your claim.

UM coverage is part of your own auto insurance policy. If the at-fault driver has no insurance, you make your injury claim against your own insurer instead, using the UM coverage you already pay for. In practice, this means:

• Your own insurance company is now the party deciding how much to pay you, which puts them in an unusual position: they are supposed to treat you fairly, but they still have a financial interest in paying less.
• Some states also require or offer underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage, which applies when the at-fault driver has some insurance, but not enough to cover your full losses. In 2023, about 18.0% of drivers nationwide were underinsured.
• Your UM or UIM claim is generally limited to the coverage amount you purchased. If you carry low UM limits, that can cap what you are able to recover, regardless of how serious your injury is.
• Most UM policies require you to notify your insurer promptly and to cooperate with their investigation, including proving the other driver was actually uninsured.

If your own insurer denies or lowballs a UM claim without a fair reason, some states allow you to challenge that under bad faith insurance rules, though the specific rules and any damage caps vary significantly by state. See our state pages for what applies where you live.

Talk to an advocate. You do not have to read your own policy alone.

When it goes wrong: a true story

Reporting on distracted driving litigation, which frequently overlaps with underinsured and uninsured driver cases, describes a pattern where injured people accept a fast, low settlement offer before understanding the full extent of their coverage options, only to find out later that additional UM or UIM coverage was available and never claimed. Insurance industry data itself shows underinsured driving has grown sharply in recent years, which means this gap is becoming more common, not less (Insurance Research Council).

This is not a story about anyone doing something wrong. Most people do not read their own policy closely enough to know what UM and UIM coverage they carry until they need it, which is why understanding your own policy is one of the first things worth checking after any crash.

What to do in the first days

1. Get your injuries documented by a doctor.
2. Talk to an advocate at WeHelpInjured. It is free.
3. Call the police and get a copy of the report, including any notation that the other driver was uninsured.
4. Contact your own insurance company and ask specifically what UM and UIM coverage you carry, and what the limits are.
5. Warning: don't wait! The UM reporting window is a trap. Report the crash to your insurer within any window required by your policy, since some UM claims have short reporting deadlines, and missing that window can cost you the claim. And important: your state's general filing deadline still runs on its own separate clock, so check that too.
6. Photograph the vehicles, the scene, and any visible injuries.
7. Keep every medical bill and missed work record in one folder.
8. Never accept a fast settlement offer from your own insurer, and never give a recorded statement, before you talk to your advocate and know the full cost of your injury.

What we can help with

• Understanding what happened and what coverage, including UM and UIM, may apply to your situation.
• Learning about state benefits or support programs you may qualify for.
• Connecting you with a lawyer who handles cases like yours, so you get the full settlement your recovery deserves.

All of it is free to you. We never take money from injured people.

Talk to an advocate. No insurance on the other side does not mean no path forward. Let us help you find yours.

Sources

• Insurance Research Council, Uninsured and Underinsured Motorists 2017-2023: https://insurance-research.org/node/130
• Insurance Research Council, More Drivers Are Underinsured: https://insurance-research.org/news/more-drivers-are-underinsured-nations-roads-according-new-irc-study
• Related reading: car crash guide