How does Pennsylvania Uninsured Motorist Coverage work?

Uninsured Motorist Coverage works like this: Let’s say a fictional young woman named Jane is stopped in a line of traffic while waiting for the red light to change. A drunk driver rear-ends her vehicle at a high speed and causes Jane to suffer injuries to her leg and face that require surgery and that leave her scarred and with a permanent limp. The drunk driver has no insurance.

If Jane has Uninsured Motorist Coverage, then her insurance company will pay her for the harm that she suffered (up to the limit of the coverage that she bought) in the amount that the drunk driver would have been responsible to pay her. On the other hand, if Jane doesn’t have “U” Coverage, and the drunk driver has no assets (and many uninsured drivers don’t), then there may be no way for Jane to get compensation for the harm she suffered.

How much the insurance company will pay is often a subject of dispute between injured people and their insurance companies. Sometimes, injured people don’t know how much their injuries are worth and they’re not sure if they should trust their insurance company. (They’re right to be skeptical of their insurance company.)