Motorcycle Accidents

September 24, 2010

What if the person who caused my accident doesn’t have enough insurance? Underinsured Motorist Coverage in Maine

What happens if someone else’s negligence behind the wheel causes you injury and they don’t have enough insurance?sIn Maine, every auto insurance policy is required to have several components. In a previous post, we discussed uninsured motorist (UM) coverage, or the coverage that exists when the other party is not insured. The partner component of UM coverage is underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage. Like with UM coverage, every auto insurance policy in Maine must have a minimum of $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident of UIM coverage (See Maine Revised Statutes Annotated Chapter 29-A Section 1605 (1)(C)(2) & (3) and Maine Revised Statutes Annotated Chapter 24-A Section 2902). This means, if you have insurance, you automatically have this coverage as part of your policy.

UIM coverage is used when someone causes you injury and their insurance policy is not sufficient to cover your damages. For example, although Maine requires $50,000 minimum of insurance, Massachusetts only requires $20,000 minimum. With the rising costs of medical expenses, even a moderate injury can easily use up this amount. This must also cover any lost wages, pain and suffering, attorney’s fees, and all other damages you may have. (The only exception is your vehicle damage, which is usually covered separately.)

So, if you are injured by someone who has $20,000 of insurance and you have $50,000, then there is a total of $70,000 of coverage right?sUnfortunately, no. In Maine, your UIM carrier receives a credit for the amount paid by the insurance company for the at fault driver. Therefore, in this example there is only a total of $50,000 of coverage. $20,000 paid by the at fault driver and $30,000 paid by your UIM carrier. Therefore, if you only have the minimum required insurance coverage of $50,000 of UIM, and someone else with the minimum causes you an injury, there is no additional coverage for your injuries.

September 18, 2010

What happens if the person who caused my accident didn’t have insurance?sUninsured Motorist Coverage in Maine

by Peter Thompson & Associates

What happens if someone else’s negligence behind the wheel causes you injury and they don’t have insurance?sIn Maine, every auto insurance policy is required to have several components. One of those components is uninsured motorist coverage (UM). Every auto insurance policy must have a minimum of $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident of UM coverage. (See Maine Revised Statutes Annotated Chapter 29-A Section 1605 (1)(C)(2) & (3) and Maine Revised Statutes Annotated Chapter 24-A Section 2902). This means, if you have insurance, you automatically have this coverage as part of your policy.

UM coverage is used when someone with no insurance at all causes you injury. In that case, you can use up to the amount of your policy. Therefore, if you have only purchased the state minimum of insurance, the maximum amount available tosyou from an accident will be $50,000. This is true even if the accident was not your fault. With the rising costs of medical expenses, even a moderate injury can easily use up this amount. This must also cover any lost wages, pain and suffering, attorney’s fees, and all other damages you may have. (The only exception is your vehicle damage, which is usually covered separately.)

Note that the limit is further split, depending on how many people are injured in the accident. For example, if a family of three are traveling in the same car and all three are injured, the maximum amount available for the whole accident is capped at $100,000. No one person can recover more than $50,000 and the total amount the insurance company will have to pay will not exceed $100,000. Again, if all three have even moderate injuries, there will likely not be enough money to properly compensate everyone.

September 9, 2010

Maine Law Requires Disclosure of Insurance Limits

by Peter Thompson & Associates

Until recently, auto and other liability insurance companies in Maine were not required to disclose the amount of insurance carried by their insureds, even when they were clearly at fault for an accident. This gave the insurance companies an advantage in settlement negotiations and in determining how long a case took to settle. Fortunately, the Maine legislature corrected this obvious inequity and granted injured persons the right to the insurance coverage information. (M.R. .A 24A -§2164-E.) If the insurance companies do not disclose the information within 60 days of a written request, you are entitled to a $500 fine from them. Many insurance companies are not yet aware of the change in the law and the team at Peter Thompson & Associates has successfully collected several $500 fines for our clients. If you have questions about your rights when dealing with insurance companies, contact us at 1-800-917-1784 or read more on our website, www.Peter-Thompson-Associates.com, on our car accident practice page.

May 5, 2010

Update: Route 11 crash victim identified

by Peter Thompson & Associates

Police on Tuesday identified the Rochester motorcyclist dealt life threatening injuries in Saturday’s accident on Route 11 as Robert Lingard, 46, who remains in serious condition at Maine Medical Center.

Sgt. Jay Drury also identified the 18-year-old New Durham man driving the pickup truck that collided with Lingard’s motorcycle as John Chamberlin.

The accident remains under investigation.

May 3, 2010

Manchester motorcycle accident results in serious injuries

by Peter Thompson & Associates

A 46-year-old Rochester resident riding a motorcycle on Route 11 was airlifted to Maine Medical Center in Portland with life threatening injuries Saturday after colliding with a pickup truck.

Police Cpl. Mike McNeil said authorities are not releasing the names of those involved, pending notification of next of kin.

He confirmed the age and hometown of the motorcyclist and said the driver of the other vehicle, a white GMC Sierra pickup, is an 18-year-old from New Durham.

October 10, 2009

Wade Foster, 35, arrested in connection with fatal collision with motorcyclist

by Peter Thompson & Associates

October 5, 2009:sA 25-year-old Lisbon motorcyclist has died as a result of a collision with a motor vehicle on Route 125 in Bowdoin. Wade Foster, 35, of Lewiston, reportedly turned his 1995 Chrysler Concord left in front of a motorcycle driven by Richard Paraskevakos, 25, of Lisbon, at approximately 6:45 p.m., according to a release from the Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Department. Paraskevakos was flown to Central Maine Medical Center by helicopter, but was later pronounced dead.

According to the Bureau of Motor Vehicle records, Foster is a habitual offender with a previous OUI conviction in 1999. Monday’s crash is being reconstructed by the Brunswick Police Department and investigated by the Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Department.

August 15, 2009

Motorcyclist and passenger injured in Augusta

by Peter Thompson & Associates

Michael Conley of Pittston and Angela Haase of Augusta were seriously injured when the motorcycle Conley was operating ran into the back of an SUV operated by Andrew Collar. Police are investigating the cause of the accident.

The crash occurred just after 11 a.m. as Conley followed Collar’s vehicle south toward Chelsea on Stone Street. The officer investigating the crash said that speed did not appear to be a factor in the collision.

As Portland and Bangor accident attorneys with a Statewide personal injury law practice, Peter Thompson and Associates has represented dozens motorcycle operators in similar collisions. An investigation into the cause of this accident would need to examine whether the driver of the SUV stopped suddenly or failed to give proper turn signals. The passenger on the motorcycle would have potential claims against the motorcyclist’s insurance coverage, as well as the SUV operator’s insurance.