Any passenger injured in a car accident usually has the legal right to file an insurance claim (and a personal injury lawsuit, if necessary) against any driver whose negligence played a part in causing the crash (there are exceptions, more on these below). But can you take action against more than one driver? Whose car insurance covers your losses? Let’s take a closer look at some of the key issues that arise when it comes to passenger injury claims after a car accident.
The different kinds of insurance policies that could come into play in a passenger injury claim after a car accident include:
A few notes to keep in mind when it comes to insurance coverage and injury claims:
A claim made against someone else's insurance policy is usually called a "third-party claim." If both drivers bear some amount of fault for the accident, you may have the option of filing a third-party claim against both of their insurance policies. However, if one party’s insurance covers your claim entirely, you cannot also recover from the other party’s insurance. There is no "double dipping," in other words.
If you are injured as a passenger in a relative’s car, you usually cannot file a third-party claim against that driver’s insurance policy. Especially if you are a relative of (and live with) the driver, you will typically be considered covered under their policy.
Even when someone else's liability insurance coverage applies to your car accident injuries, if you have health insurance, you'll usually use it to pay for necessary medical treatment, at least initially. The costs of medical care you receive (and any deductibles and co-pays) will be factored into the value of any settlement you receive. It's important to note that if you're successful in obtaining an settlement or court award, your health insurance carrier is entitled to reimbursement out of that amount. Learn more about who pays medical bills after a car accident and insurance liens on a car accident injury claim.
If you live in a no-fault car insurance state, your ability to sue the at-fault driver is usually restricted to accidents that cause injuries meeting a dollar-amount threshold (in terms of necessary medical expenses) or a legal threshold such as "serious impairment of body function." States with no-fault systems will have statutory priorities that will tell you the order in which you are required to pursue your claims. For example, you may need to look first to your own car insurance policy (if you have one) and then to your driver's coverage.
Since ultimate financial responsibility for a passenger's injuries often depends on a determination of who was at fault for the crash, let's look at some potential scenarios.
Example 1: Both Drivers Probably Liable For the Car Accident
Let’s say you were a passenger in a car that was making a left turn when it was hit by an oncoming car. In that situation, you have the right to sue the driver of the car you were riding if he or she was negligent in executing the turn, and you have the right to sue the driver of the oncoming car if he or she was negligent (i.e. if the other driver was speeding or texting, and that contributed to the accident).
Both drivers could be found negligent in that situation, and when you're injured as a passenger, it's not your job to sort out which driver was more at fault, and what that means in terms of financial liability for injuries and other losses stemming from the accident ("damages" in legalese). You can let the drivers (and their respective insurance companies) figure it out.
Example 2: Only One Driver Likely Liable for the Accident
Let’s say you were the passenger in a car that was involved in a rear-end collision. In rear-end collision claims, the driver of the car that was hit is rarely (if ever) found to be at fault (the crash is almost always the fault of the trailing car.
So, if you were the passenger in a car that was involved in a rear-end collision, your options for seeking recovery for your injuries are probably limited to making a claim against the tailing driver. From a practical standpoint, you can usually make a claim with the car insurance company that represents the driver of the car you were riding in and then let that insurance company deal with the tailing driver's insurer to figure out who's going to write the settlement check.
If you are the passenger in a two-car (or multi-vehicle) collision, and you are filing a lawsuit, you always want to make sure you sue all of the potentially liable drivers in the same lawsuit. Otherwise, you might end up with inconsistent results. And if you settle against only one driver in a two-car accident where you were a passenger, you want to make sure that any car accident settlement you get from the one driver fairly reflects the odds that you might not get anything at all against the second driver.
