Maryland Underinsured Motorist Coverage

The underlying premise of uninsured motorist coverage insurance in Maryland, as it is in most states, is to put the car accident victim in the same position they would find themselves in had the at-fault driver had liability coverage equal to the coverage to that of the accident victim. I’m oversimplifying a bit because you can have UM coverage in some instances that is less than your liability coverage. But, in the vast majority of cases, your liability coverage mirrors your uninsured motorist coverage.

So in a pure uninsured motorist case where the other driver either cannot be identified (hit-and-run or phantom vehicle are the most prominent examples) or has no insurance, your own insurance company essentially steps in the shoes of the defendant, assuming the at-fault driver’s liability for the accident but also his damages.

This is a simple concept, but for Maryland accident victims, it is conceptually difficult to get your mind around. Why is my insurance company defending the guy who hurt me? Why is my own insurance company now essentially my adversary?

As crazy as it seems and as aggregating as it might feel to have your own insurance company turn against you, it is actually a good thing for you because while the insurance company is essentially defending the bad guy; they are also paying the money that bad guy would have paid you if he had insurance.