[Transcript] ![person pointing at insurance policy form after accident]()
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Hi, my name is Kenneth Berger, and I made this video to share with you a few things that I want to make sure you know regarding insurance policy limits.
So, when it comes to insurance policy limits, we're talking about how much insurance coverage exists on the vehicles involved in a crash. Ok? And the first insurance policy limit we start with would be on the vehicle that ran into you, or the driver that caused your harm. Now, in South Carolina, the minimum limits are just $25,000 per person, but a lot of people, fortunately, have more insurance than that. The insurance policy limits may be $50,000, $100,000, a million, or even more. We've had cases where there are even multiple layers of insurance coverage. And, for tractor-trailers and 18-wheelers, the insurance policy limits there start at $750,000 and work their way up. So, it really depends on who hit you and what kind of vehicle or what kind of insurance policy they had.
If the person who caused your harm has insurance, ok, but their insurance policy limits aren't enough to fully compensate you for all your medical bills and other losses, that's when what's known as underinsured motorist coverage may apply, and we've got other videos on the website concerning underinsured motorist coverage, which kicks in after we get the full limits from the liability coverage on the person who caused your harm.
Another question that comes up a lot is, how do you go about finding out someone's insurance policy limits. Well, most of the time, the other driver isn't going to volunteer that information, ok? And a lot of times, that person's insurance company isn't going to volunteer that information. Fortunately, there's a law in South Carolina, and it's 38-77-250, again 38-77-250, and under that law, if certain requirements are met, then the at-fault driver's insurance carrier has to divulge, has to tell you, their insurance limits. If you don't want to worry about having to research legal statutes and make sure that multiple statutory requirements are met, that's where having a lawyer to help identify those coverage limits can be really helpful. Again, in a lot of situations, we've been forced to send off requests to determine the insurance policy limits, and in some instances, where they won't voluntarily tell us, or won't comply with the law, then at that point, if necessary, we'll end up filing a lawsuit to make sure the insurance policy limits are disclosed.
Taking a big step back, remember, the thing to know is that the insurance policy limits can range anywhere from $25,000 up to a million or several million dollars and anywhere in between, and if the person has enough insurance to cover all your losses, great, there are no worries about underinsured coverage. However, if they don't have a lot of insurance coverage, but you've got a lot of losses and medical bills, at that point, it may be worth looking at your underinsured motorist policy. And if that's something you have additional questions about, we're surely or certainly glad to answer them. If we can do anything to help you, contact us. Our South Carolina personal injury attorney is glad to give you a free consultation and make sure that your rights are protected, and that there's no insurance company that tries to add insult to injury.
