I Was Hit by a Hit-and-Run Driver — Can I Still Recover?
Yes, usually through your own policy: uninsured motorist coverage treats a hit-and-run driver as uninsured, covering your injuries even though the driver fled. Report the crash to police within 24 hours, notify your insurer promptly, and don’t assume the driver is gone — plates, cameras, and witnesses find more of them than you’d think.
Hit and run? You likely have more coverage than you think — 24/7.
Se habla español — Llama Me. No out-of-pocket fees — we work on contingency.
Who pays when the driver fled?
Most often, your own uninsured motorist (UM) coverage — California law defines an “uninsured motor vehicle” to include hit-and-run vehicles whose driver can’t be identified (Ins. Code § 11580.2). Your insurer steps into the fleeing driver’s shoes and pays what that driver’s insurance should have. If you’re covered on any household policy with UM, you likely have a path.
What are the deadlines and conditions for a hit-and-run UM claim?
Strict ones. For an unidentified-driver claim, the statute requires that the accident be reported to police within 24 hours and to your insurer within 30 days (§ 11580.2(b)), and traditionally requires physical contact with the fleeing vehicle. These trip up real claims constantly — report to police the same day, every time, even when you feel fine.
Can the driver actually be found?
Often, yes. Partial plates narrow fast; doorbell, dashcam, business, and traffic cameras cover more of LA than most people realize (footage overwrites in days — preservation letters go out immediately); paint transfer and debris identify vehicles; and hit-and-run is a crime (Veh. Code § 20001), so police do investigate injury cases. Found drivers mean a liability claim on top of — or instead of — your UM claim.
Will a UM claim raise my rates? It wasn’t my fault.
California bars insurers from treating you as at-fault for rating purposes when you weren’t principally at fault — a hit-and-run victim plainly qualifies (10 CCR § 2632.13). Don’t skip the claim out of premium fear. Full explanation: will my insurance go up?
Is claiming against my own insurer simpler than a normal claim?
Counterintuitively, no. In a UM claim your own insurer is the counterparty — it evaluates, negotiates, and disputes like any adversary, just politely. Disagreements go to arbitration rather than jury trial under most UM provisions. Treat your own insurer’s questions with the same care you’d give the other side’s: recorded statements included.
The driver ran. Your claim didn’t.
Se habla español — Llama Me. No out-of-pocket fees — we work on contingency.
