Black Ice Could = Bankruptcy

You are driving home during a snow storm in early January and suddenly hit a patch of black ice on a two-lane highway. You lose control of your vehicle and hit the concrete barrier on the opposite side of the highway. After deflecting off the barrier, your automobile slams into a 2017 Ford F150 that was in the opposite lane. 

The collision forces the Ford pickup off of the road where it flips over as it goes into the ditch. Two other cars, a 2016 Tahoe and 2014 Honda Accord, were following behind you and are forced to take evasive actions to avoid the accident. The Accord avoids your car and the pickup by taking the ditch but hits a large road sign damaging both it and the car. The Tahoe rear-ends your car and spins you into the median.

This is how the accident breaks down:

• The 2017 F150 is totaled at a value of $44,570 and the driver needed three days in the hospital, three months of physical therapy, and will miss 2 months of work. Total medical expenses added up to $42,623.

• The 2016 Accord requires $11,434 dollars to repair the damage from the collision with the sign and the driver suffered a concussion and a neck injury. With an overnight hospital stay, medical expenses from the Accord are $12,164.

• The 2016 Tahoe is totaled from the collision at a value $38,746. Three of four family members inside sustained multiple injuries that required multiple nights in the hospital. A young child inside the Tahoe sustained a serious head injury that required a week stay in the NICU and multiple years of continual therapy. Total medical costs for the family came to $467,845 after all procedures and subsequent therapy and settlements.

• The cost to repair the concrete barrier and the road sign total $14,569

The Result = Your Fault

You are deemed 100% at fault for causing the accident because of a patch of ice you couldn’t see, and your auto insurance will be the primary source of funding for the damages. Your current policy is 100/300/100.

• $100,000 bodily injury liability per person
  
• $300,000 bodily injury liability per accident
  
• $100,000 property damage liability per accident

The bodily injuries from the accident totaled $522,632, with property damage coming in just shy of $110,000.

Based on your current 100/300/100 policy, you and your family are left responsible for what your insurance didn’t cover. That’s $222,632 for bodily injuries, and $9,319 for property damage.

In total, you are personally liable for $231,951. Your insurance carrier has fulfilled its contractual obligation to pay the policy limits, and you are sued for these additional damages.

Your options:

• Use your personal assets or other funding sources to cover the remaining $231,951.

• If no assets or other sources exist, have your income garnished until the judgement is satisfied.

It’s possible that for an additional $5-20 per month, your coverage could have been $500,000 bodily injury, $500,000 property damage and results would have been much different. 

Make sure you and your family are protected with a quick consultation from Fuqua Insurance Group.