At the law office of Peter Briskin we at times come across the situation where a prospective client at the free consultation will tell us that either they had no car insurance at the time of the accident or that they think the person operating the vehicle that caused the accident had no insurance. Sometimes we get the call about a person injured in an accident that was caused by someone else but they happened to get charged with operating a vehicle while under the influence when the police arrived on the scene. These are very different situations with different consequences.
If you have been injured in a motor vehicle accident and are seeking representation to recover money for injuries sustained then the effect of the above situations is very important to you.
Scenario 1
You are the driver of a car that is involved in a motor vehicle collision in New Jersey and the other driver, the one that caused the accident, had no car insurance on the date of accident.
We look to your own automobile insurance policy or the insurance policy of a resident relative for something called UM/UIM a.k.a. Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist Coverage.
Scenario 2
You are driving your car which is uninsured and you are hit by someone who is driving a vehicle which is insured.
Most states now have mandatory car insurance laws that require all drivers to have some type of insurance. Compulsory insurance laws are an effort to keep insurance premiums at a lower cost for everyone. A number of states have passed what are called “No Pay, No Play” laws which aim to limit the compensation for people who are breaking the compulsory insurance law when they are injured in a car accident.
N.J.S.A.39:6A-4.5(a) bars a person who was injured while a passenger in her own uninsured automobile from pursuing a personal injury action to recover economic and noneconomic damages for those injuries.
**Importantly, for our motorcycle operators, this statute does not apply to motorcyclists.
New Jersey’s Supreme Court in Perrelli v. Pastorelle (2011) 206 NJ 193 went even further and ruled that N.J.S.A.39:6A-4.5(a) bars a person who was injured while a passenger in her own uninsured automobile from pursuing a personal injury action to recover economic and noneconomic damages for those injuries.
Scenario 3
Accident was not your fault but you were operating the vehicle while intoxicated or under the influence of drugs.
N.J.S.A.39:6A-4.5(b) New Jersey statute bars uninsured motorists that are injured, drivers under the influence that are injured, or acting with the intent to injure themselves or others while operating a vehicle from economic and non-economic recovery from the tortfeasor.
Every scenario is different and your facts may not fit neatly into one of the above examples. If you have been injured in a car crash or motorcycle accident in New Jersey or New York, call us and take advantage of that free personal injury case consultation so that we may properly evaluate your particular situation and make a decision on whether or not you have a potential claim.