What Happens When the At-Fault Driver’s Insurance Isn’t Enough to Cover My Injuries?
Car AccidentMany at-fault drivers only carry the state minimum liability limits. In South Carolina, that usually means just $25,000.
If your medical bills are $100,000, $25,000 does not fix your problem—it barely scratches the surface. This is one of the most stressful moments in the entire recovery process.
The insurance adjuster’s goal is to hand you that $25,000 check and have you sign a release. Once you sign that document, the case is over. You may not be able to ask for more later. But that $25,000 check is rarely the only money available. It is simply the first layer.
When damages exceed the policy limits, the case shifts from a simple claim to a difficult financial investigation. We have to look for other buckets of money. This could include your own underinsured motorist coverage, umbrella policies, or corporate assets.
At Hughey Law Firm, our job is to uncover those layers before you sign your rights away. Call us today for a free consultation. We’ll analyze your case and outline your options, with no obligation to hire us.
Key Takeaways for When a Car Accident Exceeds Insurance Limits
- The at-fault driver’s insurance is only the first layer of compensation. When damages are severe, we investigate other sources, such as your own Underinsured Motorist (UIM) coverage, umbrella policies, and corporate assets if the driver was working.
- Your own Underinsured Motorist (UIM) coverage is a vital financial protection. South Carolina law allows you to stack UIM limits from multiple vehicles in your household, which can significantly increase the total funds available for your recovery.
- Never sign an insurance company’s release without a legal review. Accepting a policy limit offer requires signing a release that ends your claim, preventing you from pursuing other compensation sources like UIM or personal assets.
The Math of Minimum Limits in South Carolina
To understand the problem, you have to look at the numbers. South Carolina law sets specific requirements for the minimum amount of liability insurance a driver must carry. These limits have not kept pace with the rising costs of modern medical care.
Currently, the minimum liability limits in South Carolina are:
- $25,000 for bodily injury per person: This is the maximum the insurance will pay for one person’s injuries.
- $50,000 for bodily injury per accident: This is the total pot of money available if multiple people are hurt.
- $25,000 for property damage: This covers repairs to your vehicle.
Consider the cost of a severe accident. A helicopter transport, a week in the ICU, and orthopedic surgery will burn through $25,000 within days. If you miss six months of work, the lost wages alone could exceed that limit.
The situation becomes more difficult if you were not alone in the car. Imagine a family of four is rear-ended. All four family members are injured. The at-fault driver has the minimum $50,000 per accident limit, which must be split among all four people. No matter how high your medical bills are, the insurance company for the other driver is contractually capped at that amount.
This leaves a massive gap between what you need and what they are offering. When this happens, we stop looking at the at-fault driver as the sole source of funds. We have to look elsewhere.
Your First Line of Defense: Underinsured Motorist (UIM) Coverage
When the other driver’s insurance falls short, the most common source of additional compensation is your own insurance policy. This is called Underinsured Motorist (UIM) coverage.
You should distinguish between Uninsured (UM) and Underinsured (UIM). UM applies when the other driver has no insurance or flees the scene. UIM applies when the driver has insurance, but it is not enough to cover your damages. The UIM policy floats on top of the at-fault driver’s limits.
For example, if you have $100,000 in damages and the at-fault driver pays their $25,000 limit, your UIM coverage may step in to pay the remaining $75,000 (up to your policy limit).
The Meaningful Offer Requirement
Many people tell us, “I don’t think I have UIM. I wanted the cheapest rate, so I probably didn’t buy it.” Do not make that assumption without letting us check.
In South Carolina, insurance carriers are legally required to offer you UIM coverage. They are not permitted to just skip over it. If you declined it, there must be a specific, written rejection form on file that meets strict legal criteria. If the insurance company is unable to produce this form, or if the form is legally defective, the law could reform your policy to include UIM coverage effectively granting you coverage you did not realize you had.
We review these declaration pages and rejection forms routinely. We frequently find errors that allow us to trigger coverage for clients who thought they were out of options.
Stacking Insurance Policies: A South Carolina Advantage
If you have UIM coverage, the next question is: How much? This brings us to a legal concept called stacking. South Carolina has consumer-friendly laws regarding stacking, which could significantly increase the available funds.
Stacking allows you to combine the coverage limits from multiple vehicles in your household. If you have three cars in your driveway and you pay for UIM coverage on all of them, you might be able to add those limits together.
How Stacking Works in Practice
- You have UIM coverage of $25,000 per person.
- You own three vehicles, all insured under the same policy (or even different policies in the same household).
- Calculation: $25,000 (Vehicle 1) + $25,000 (Vehicle 2) + $25,000 (Vehicle 3) = $75,000 total available UIM coverage.
This effectively triples your coverage limit. However, not everyone is able to stack. It depends on whether you are a Class 1 or Class 2 insured.
- A Class 1 insured is typically the named policyholder and their resident spouse or relatives. Class 1 insureds are usually able to stack their policies.
- A Class 2 insured is essentially a guest in the car—someone who occupies the vehicle but does not own it and is not on the policy. Class 2 insureds usually cannot stack the owner’s policies.
We can help determine which category applies to you.
Investigating Vicarious Liability and Corporate Coverage
When a personal auto policy is exhausted, we look at who else might be responsible for the crash. In many severe accidents, the driver is just one piece of the puzzle. Liability sometimes extends to employers or vehicle owners.
Commercial insurance policies carry much higher limits—often $1,000,000 or more. Finding a link to a corporate defendant changes the entire financial outlook of a case.
Was the Driver Working?
Under the legal doctrine of respondeat superior, an employer may be held liable for the actions of an employee who is on the clock. This applies to many types of employees, including:
- Pizza delivery drivers using their own cars.
- Sales representatives traveling to a client meeting.
- Contractors moving between job sites.
- Rideshare drivers (Uber/Lyft) who have the app turned on.
If the at-fault driver was performing any work-related task, their employer’s commercial insurance may come into play.
Negligent Entrustment
Sometimes the person driving the car is not the owner. If the owner of the vehicle knowingly lent their car to someone who was incompetent, reckless, or intoxicated, the owner may be held liable for negligent entrustment.
For example, if a parent tosses the keys to a child they know has a suspended license, or if someone lends a car to a friend who is clearly drunk, the owner’s insurance might be liable for the damages caused by the driver.
Dram Shop Liability
In South Carolina, particularly in hospitality hubs like Charleston, drunk driving accidents are common. If the at-fault driver was intoxicated, we investigate where they were coming from.
If a bar, restaurant, or social club served alcohol to a person who was already visibly intoxicated, and that person then drove and caused a crash, the establishment could be liable under Dram Shop laws. These businesses usually carry liquor liability insurance policies with substantial limits.
Pursuing Personal Assets: The Umbrella and the Judgment
A common question we hear is, “Can’t we just sue the driver for the rest of the money?”
The technical answer is yes. You are able to obtain a personal judgment against the at-fault driver for the amount that exceeds their insurance. The practical answer, however, is more difficult.
Most drivers who carry minimum insurance limits do so because they are unable to afford better coverage. In other words, they likely do not have significant assets. In the legal world, we call these defendants judgment-proof. Spending thousands of dollars on litigation to get a judgment against someone with no money is pointless.
The Exception: High-Net-Worth Individuals
Sometimes, the at-fault driver has assets but simply chose low limits on their auto policy. In these cases, we perform asset checks. We look for:
- Real estate holdings (vacation homes, rental properties).
- Boats or recreational vehicles.
- Business ownership interests.
We also look for umbrella policies. An umbrella policy is extra liability insurance designed to protect a person’s assets once their main auto or home insurance is used up.
These policies are not always obvious. The insurance adjuster is not going to volunteer that an umbrella policy exists. We have to formally request this information during the discovery phase of a lawsuit.
Maximizing Net Recovery via Lien Resolution
When the available insurance money is truly capped (meaning we have found every policy, stacked every limit, and confirmed there are no other assets), the only way to get you more money is to reduce your obligations.
Your net recovery is what you keep after medical bills, lawyer fees, and costs are paid. If we cannot increase the incoming money, we must decrease the outgoing money.
This is a major part of what we do at Hughey Law Firm. We negotiate with medical providers and health insurers on your behalf.
- Medical Liens: We contact the hospitals and doctors to negotiate a reduction in your outstanding bills. Providers will sometimes accept a lump sum that is lower than the invoice amount to ensure they get paid immediately.
- Health Insurance Subrogation: If your health insurance (like BlueCross, Medicare, or Medicaid) paid for your treatment, they typically want to be paid back from your settlement. This is called subrogation. We review these liens to ensure they are legally valid and negotiate to reduce the repayment amount.
By slashing these bills, we put more of the settlement funds into your pocket, ensuring that the limited insurance money goes toward your future, not just back to the hospital.
FAQ for Car Accidents Exceeding Insurance Limits
Can I sue the at-fault driver for more than their insurance limits?
Yes, you may file a lawsuit for the full amount of your damages. If the verdict exceeds the insurance limits, the driver is personally responsible for the difference. However, collecting that money is complicated if the driver has no assets. We assess the driver’s financial status before recommending this path to ensure it is worth your time and expense.
What is the Uninsured Motorist Fee in South Carolina?
South Carolina allows drivers to pay a $600 fee to the DMV to drive legally without liability insurance. This creates a risk for everyone else on the road. If you are hit by someone who paid this fee, they have no insurance coverage to offer you. This is why carrying your own Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage is one of the smartest financial decisions you can make.
Does my insurance rate go up if I file a UIM claim?
Generally, if you are not at fault for the accident, filing a UIM claim should not cause your premiums to increase significantly. South Carolina law prohibits insurers from raising rates solely because of a not-at-fault claim. You paid for this coverage specifically for this situation; you should not be afraid to use it.
What if the at-fault driver is from another state?
If the driver is from a state with different insurance minimums, the situation may become legally difficult. The policy typically adjusts to meet South Carolina’s minimums if the accident happened here, but choice of law rules may apply regarding stacking and coverage limits. We handle interstate coverage disputes regularly.
Can I accept the $25,000 offer now and sue for more later?
No. This is the most dangerous trap for victims. When an insurance company sends a check, they require you to sign a Release of Liability. This document legally absolves the driver and the insurer of any future claims.
Once you sign it, you usually cannot pursue UIM coverage or sue the driver for additional money. Never sign a release without a lawyer reviewing it first.
Do Not Accept a Policy Limit Offer Without an Investigation
When an insurance company offers you the policy limits, it might feel like a win. They are admitting fault and offering to pay the maximum amount on the contract. But you have to ask yourself: Is this actually the maximum?
If you have received an offer that does not cover your medical bills, or if you are worried about what happens when a car accident exceeds insurance limits, contact us. Hughey Law Firm will investigate the policy language, check for hidden assets, and calculate the true value of your claim.
We do not let our clients walk away with less than the law allows.
Nathan Hughey, an attorney and fourth-generation South Carolinian, founded Hughey Law Firm in 2007. Before that, he spent five years defending nursing homes and insurance companies. Leveraging his experience, he now advocates for those injured or wronged by such entities, securing over $300 million in verdicts and settlements.