Hit by a driver with no insurance, cops did nothing

Hopefully, your insurance includes uninsured motorist coverage.

Yeah, a lawsuit could end up costing more than the damage, so that's up to you. I happen to be in New Mexico. Only the defendant can be represented by an attorney in small claims court. Your decision will probably be based on how mad you are.

Thank God I live in Canada. A Hit and Run here costs me my deductible ($250) and I could even get that back, if there was footage. And maybe there'd be no charge at all (depends on my last claim, which was over 15 years ago).

Feel sorry for this individual. Really sorry. That just sucks.

It seems there are many reasons to admire Canada.

This is why God made lawyers.

Your insurance company will probably seek damages from the other driver. Cooperate fully; this is a big part of why you pay premiums. If the cops won't do anything, the courts should.

If your insurance includes uninsured motorist coverage (and it probably does since it is required in Wisconsin), then your insurance company will pay for the damage (maybe even without a deductible) and then they will pursue the other party if they feel it is worth it. You don't need a lawyer since the other driver will now owe your insurance company.

Agreed - if you are worried I would just follow up with your insurance company - they should handle it and follow up.

As far as the police not siting the person with no insurance - they probably felt it was not worth their time. I know to you it is very important, but to them it is a small thing. Also not sure the specifics but I know in MA often times if an accident occurs in a parking lot between two drivers (even when it is obvious who should be at fault) it is usually considered equal fault since there are not always clear cut driving rules in a parking lot.

If I were you I would call my insurance company and ask how this is expected to be handled and what you can do to help.

Unfortunately RMV always work very slowly...

Something seems off with this.

So, you car got hit and you filed a police report. You also filed a claim with your insurance company. How do you know it was an uninsured motorist? It's not something a cop would know and an insurance company shouldn't be giving out private information on another driver.

How do you know the other driver wasn't cited? Why is the Department of Motor Vehicles processing anything? Do you know this driver? How much damage was caused & what is the cost to fix it? If the filing fee for Small Claims Court is under the damage amount, why wouldn't you take it to court to get the cost of the damages plus court fees?

You're being cavalier about rules and regulations. Are you saying you've never done 1 mph over the speed limit? Maybe a California roll through a stop sign? Or even just a little bit of a pink light going through intersect? The only difference is, you didn't get caught.

Lighten up Frances. When people have to choose eating vs car insurance, which one do you think they're not going to pay? I know it sucks, but, geez, relax a bit.

According to I'd read that you can get "uninsured [and underinsured] motorist coverage" to "protect your finances if you're in an accident caused by an uninsured [or underinsured] driver".

I've never thought of such - and it's unknown here in Germany:
in Germany (and all EU-countries), there is a legal obligation to have one's car or motor vehicle insured.
And thanks to fast communication between insurers and the registration offices, it is very, very rare for vehicles to be on the road in this country without third-party insurance.
But if such happens, and there's an accident ... then your damages are paid via the Association Verkehrsopferhilfe e. V. (VOH), an institution of al
German motor liability insurers. (That's dann by the Verkehrsopferhilfe e. V. (VOH) in Germany since 1966 (before it was done by a federal office) and since 2003 for accidents of German car in the EU as well.

It's the law in most states including Wisconsin also but there is also an insurance rider for when people disregard the law and that is also required in most places.

You don't get a special insurance here for damages done by uninsured cars/vehicles - the insurers had founded that association to help road victims and to avoid that someone is left sitting on their damage.

All EU-countries and most other European countries have a "National Guarantee Fund" which covers the damages caused in that country by unidentified or uninsured motor vehicles, trailers, bicycles and devices assimilated to vehicles. (We had had it Germany, too, since 1966 ththe insurers do it now themselves, subsidiary.)

I would think the police at the scene would scan both plates/registration - it would then be found that the car was not insured or not legally registered depending on the law in the state.

For example if you legally need to carry insurance like this poster said is required in the state, usually your registration would have a stamp on it from the insurance company so when you get in such an accident this is where you trade license and registration information.

If the police at the scene ran this information - s/he would have found a lapsed registration as in it would not legally be registered if the driver was not paying insurance.

I would think then the police would inform the other driver that this driver was not insured as each driver is supposed to trade insurance, registration and license information - either that or if the police were not there a similar thing would have been discovered when reporting this to his insurance company or filing an accident report at the local police station.

At some point this driver would have found out the other driver was not insured.

In NM they (police) will check your insurance card, which you are required to carry exactly like your driver license.

yeah that is my understanding in most states you have to carry an insurance card or you have that stamp on your car registration which indicates where you are insured with.

I thought at one point in CA you were not required to carry insurance - not sure if this is still true and if insurance is required in all states. That doesn't mean that someone drives a car without insurance though.

Thanks for the responses.

I only pay for liability insurance. I work from home and don't drive much, but I need my car for essential things. My insurance agent isn't very helpful to be honest. I guess I was under the impression that liability doesn't include uninsured motorist coverage. Am I wrong?

Also, to the person giving me grief, when the police came, they collected information from myself and the other driver. I knew immediately that the other driver was uninsured. And when I received a copy of the police report two weeks later, it said right on it that the other driver was only given a verbal warning.

I have to eat too, why do I have to pay my hard earned money on car insurance if I won't get in trouble driving without it? I don't even drive my car much at all. And when I was 20 yrs old, I got into trouble for driving with no insurance. They impounded my car, fined me, and I had to go to court. Then I had to have an SR22 on my license. Why does this person get off so easy, and why do I have to play by the rules when they don't?

This other driver was trying to start a fight as well along with her boyfriend. Yelling and swearing at me. I'm only 5'7' and about 110lbs, I was scared. That's why I called the cops.

That's strange, indeed.

Unfortunately it sounds like it won't cover an uninsured driver. On my insurance it covers for uninsured or underinsured and it is shown separately. My husband was recently in an accident where a truck side swiped him on the highway and kept on going - he drove off the road as a result and totaled the car. Fortunately for us it was covered due to the insurance we had since the other driver did not stop or even check to make sure my husband was not hurt.

I would be a bit more forceful with your insurance company - call them and ask them what they can do to help you get compensated and also what you can do. If they are not helpful ask for a manager or if there is someone else that can assist you. Be polite but firm. I had to be this way with our insurance company as they were not returning calls - just to get stuff processed as it should and to get an extension on our car rental (due to them not calling us back)

Definitely, be understanding and polite(if you are rude you are just going to piss them off) - but be persistent and explain your situation - often times if you get the right person they would do their best to help you especially if you are polite and kind (while still be firm) - there are so many rude people out there by being human with them you get better results and if you explain yourself and the difficulty you are having they will see you as human and not just another customer or number - especially if you have been a paying customer for several years.

Uninsured motorist coverage is required in your state so you should be covered. Push your agent.

or get another one!

I will definitely take your advice, and the advice of others here. I appreciate it. I will call my insurance company tomorrow in fact. I got 2 estimates for the damage and they were both over $3,000. It makes me angry that I have to drive around with my door messed up.

I don't mean to sound controversial, but I did notice that the two officers who came to the scene and took the report were both white. One of them was a female who was very small and petite. I am white, and the person who hit me and her boyfriend were both black. They were being very combative to both me and the officers. My city is one of the two largest in Wisconsin and we've had issues with rioting in the past year. I can't help but wonder if race had anything to do with the officer's decision not to cite this person. Maybe this officer didn't want to wind up on the news being called a racist. I'm not sure. But that's not very fair to everyone else, if indeed different standards are being enforced based on intimidation and skin color. The boyfriend of the driver was being very rude to the female officer and called her a sexist name. Seems like since the other driver was breaking the law and then not even being cooperative that they should've been cited.

I'm not a racist, I have many black friends and even family members. But it was hard not to notice these things.