What Happens if I’m the Passenger in a Car Accident?

Today we’re going to talk about what happens if I’m a passenger in a vehicle and I’ve been injured?

My name is Adam Hepburn and I’m one of the partners at HHJ Trial Attorneys. This question is something that we deal with all the time. We represent many clients who have been only passengers, not drivers, in a vehicle collision.

So as a passenger, what can you do if you’re seriously injured or even minorly injured?

Now the most obvious one is if somebody hits you and you’re the passenger, you can go after the person that hit you if they’re primarily at fault. Now, if it turns out that that party that hit you doesn’t have enough insurance, you can then actually go after what’s called “uninsured” or “underinsured motorist coverage” that is carried by your friend, the driver of your own vehicle.

Now, what about if your friend’s at fault? The person who’s driving your car is the one who’s to blame for the accident and you get injured? Well, as a passenger, you can recover against your friend’s insurance company. So you can actually make claims for damages through their insurance company.

Now let’s say, for instance, that the person that hit you (the third party) doesn’t have insurance. Let’s say that your friend who’s driving was at fault and they don’t have insurance. What happens then?

If that happens – if you, yourself, have something called uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, you can still recover damages for your injuries. So as you can see, if you’re a passenger in a vehicle, there are many ways where you can recover for your injuries, depending on who hit you, who’s at fault, and what type of insurance policies are in play.

Please get in touch with us with any other questions.