As of August 2015, 48 of the 50 states have some type of law that requires all drivers to carry insurance that would pay for bodily injuries resulting from the actions of negligent drivers. Florida is one of the two that does not (the other being New Hampshire), which has been the subject of some debate on the part of advocates and state lawmakers.
A recent study performed from the Insurance Information Institute reveals Florida is second behind only California in the total amount of uninsured motorists driving on highways in the state. There are approximately 3.2 million Florida drivers who do not have insurance to pay for injuries they would potentially cause to other people in a crash.
An issue exacerbated
This lack of required bodily injury liability insurance is coupled with another major insurance-related problem — a large number of drivers here have the bare minimum personal injury protection (PIP) coverage, which offers minimum payments to themselves and none to others after accidents, even when they are responsible for causing a collision resulting in injuries.
What does all this mean? Basically, if you get into an accident in Florida, it could very likely be with a driver who does not have insurance that can help pay for injuries, meaning you could be on the hook for a significant bill for medical expenses and other damages.
Until changes to the law can be made, drivers are encouraged to have large amounts of uninsured motorist coverage, just in case they get into an accident with a driver who doesn’t have bodily injury insurance. The costs of this type of coverage are generally quite reasonable, and it can cover your family members for accidents when you are in someone else’s car.
For more information on Florida car insurance laws and standards, and what you should do if involved in a serious crash, work with a knowledgeable Bradenton auto accident attorney at Goldman, Babboni, Fernandez, Murphy & Walsh.