About the Firm Roselli McNelisAuto Insurance Explained

The Attorneys at ROSELLI  ♦ McNELIS are trained and experienced in Motor Vehicle Insurance and  Insurance Law.   Lisa  A. McNelis teaches  Insurance  Law  Issues at  Nova  Law School, as well as,  to other attorneys. In each case our Attorneys  will  review  and evaluate all available insurance coverage  so  we will be able to maximize your potential recovery and  obtain  for  you  full and fair compensation.

Driver  and  Vehicle  Owner  Responsibility

In Florida, the negligent Driver of a motor vehicle may be held responsible for an accident causing injuries or death, and the Owner of the vehicle is also responsible for the damages caused by the negligent operation  of their motor vehicle if driven with their consent.  The Owner of  the vehicle does not have to be found negligent.  The Owner of the motor vehicle bears responsibility for the negligence and damages caused by the Driver, under what is known as the “Dangerous Instrumentality Doctrine”.   It is  also possible to combine several policies of motor vehicle insurance, if available, when multiple parties are responsible for causing the accident.   For example, if the negligent driver has a policy  with one company, and the owner of the vehicle has a  policy with another,  we can under  most circumstances combine the  policy limits of each  policy  for the total amount of available coverage.

Personal  Injury  Protection  (PIP)  Coverage

Under Florida Law,  most   motor  vehicle  accidents  are governed  by what is know as Florida’s No-Fault Motor Vehicle Insurance Law. This  law  provides  that in  motor vehicle accidents, with some exclusions,  no matter  which  driver is at  fault  for causing  the accident, an  injured  party must first look to their own  motor vehicle insurance for payment of medical bills and lost wages.  The injured  person would be allowed to eventually proceed with a claim for damages, including pain and suffering and other non economic damages, as well as, economic losses, if their injuries meet what is known as the No-Fault Threshold. Meeting this Threshold  allows a claim  or lawsuit  to be brought against  the person  or  persons  who caused the accident and their insurance company.  If the injured party suffers  Permanent Injuries  or Disability,  Permanent Loss of Bodily Function, Significant Scarring, or Death,  then the Threshold  would  be  met allowing  a claim to be brought against  the person  who caused  the accident.  Personal Injury Protection Coverage (PIP)  will under most policies pay  for 80% of  medical  bills  for necessary medical treatment , and 60% of  lost wages.  In order to be successful in a claim against the responsible party where Florida No-Fault Law applies,  the injured  party’s attorney must prove:
  1. That the Defendant was negligent in causing the accident,
  2. The injuries meet the applicable threshold by medical testimony,
  3. The injuries suffered by the Plaintiff were caused by the accident,
  4. The full extent of compensable damages that have been suffered

Medical  Payments  Coverage

Some Motor Vehicle Insurance Policies have specific coverage that pay’s only medical bills.  This Medical Payments Coverage will pay medical bills for treatment of accident  related  injuries  up to the amount of the available coverage.  This coverage does not pay lost  wages  as does the Personal Injury Protection Coverage  (PIP).

Bodily  Injury  Liability  Coverage

This is  the coverage under a  Motor  Vehicle Insurance Policy  that  would  pay  for  the injuries and damages to someone that is injured or killed  by a  negligently operated  motor vehicle.  In a motor vehicle accident  this is the primary coverage that  we  would  look  to  provide compensation.   We would  look to the Motor Vehicle Insurance of the negligent vehicle Driver and  the Owner of the vehicle  for  this coverage.  In  Florida  however, there is  no present  requirement  that motor  vehicle  owners or drivers carry  Bodily Injury Insurance Coverage.

Motor Vehicle Insurance Policies provide coverage for the person or persons  who are specifically named in the policy,  known as the Named Insured’s.  Many  Motor Vehicle Insurance Policies  will provide the Named Insured’s  with coverage no matter what vehicle he or she is driving. Depending on the terms of the policy, there also may be coverage for family members or persons who drive those vehicles identified in the policy  who have permission to operate the vehicle.

A Motor Vehicle Insurance Policy  will usually cover  the Listed Vehicles, which are those vehicles specifically  identified in the policy. In addition, coverage under a Motor Vehicle Insurance Policy may also cover afor a limited time period, vehicles the named insured  has purchased  but has not yet put on the policy.

When  a  Motor Vehicle Insurance Policy has Bodily Injury Coverage, the Policy Limit is the amount of  insurance coverage available under the policy for the specific type of coverage.  For Bodily Injury Coverage, the Policy Limits are usually phrased  in terms  of  the maximum amount the insurance company  will  pay to a single  person  and the maximum amount it will pay for any one accident. A policy  with Bodily Injury Policy Limits of  $50,000/$100,000,  for example,  means that the insurance company could pay any person injured in an accident  for which  their insured  is  found  negligent  and  responsible,  up to $50,000 in compensation. However, the insurance company will not pay  more than $100,000 for any single accident, regardless of the number of  people  injured in that accident.  A policy may also have Single Limit Bodily Injury Coverage, for example, Policy Limits of $10,000.  This would provide a  maximum  amount of coverage available for the insurance company to pay to any one  person,  however  if  multiple parties are injured, the total amount of  coverage available to be shared  by all injured parties is $10,000.

Uninsured / Underinsured  Motorist  Coverage

In Florida and many States,  when the injuries a person or family sustains requires compensation which is greater than the available Bodily Injury Policy Limits of the Defendants insurance coverage, the Injured Party  may look  to their own Motor Vehicle Insurance Policy if they have purchased coverage known as Uninsured / Underinsured  Motorist (UM) Coverage, or they may seek additional damages directly  from the person or  persons  responsible  for causing  the injury from  their personal assets. Under some policies it is possible to multiply the policy limits of UM Coverage by the number of vehicles listed in the policy, which is known as Stacking. As the name of this type of coverage suggests, UM coverage provides the insured with additional coverage in the event that they are injured by an uninsured driver, or a driver with insufficient bodily injury coverage in relation to the claimants injuries and damages.

The importance of having UM coverage under your Automobile Insurance policy in Florida cannot be overstated. For persons injured in a motor vehicle accident in the United States, there is approximately a one in seven chance that the driver at fault is uninsured.  According to recent studies by the Insurance Information Institute, Florida ranks second in the nation for uninsured motorists. In Florida, there is approximately a one in five chance that the driver at-fault is uninsured. Unfortunately, there is presently no requirement in Florida that drivers carry Bodily Injury Liability coverage under their automobile insurance policies.

 

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