Florida Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

As personal injury lawyers representing victims of car accidents throughout the State of Florida, we strongly urge our clients and friends to buy uninsured motorist coverage. Our comments are buoyed by a recent study release by the Insurance Research Council which confirms that one out of every seven drivers have no car insurance.

The study, not surprisingly, found that the financial hardship of the current economy is the primary reason why many drivers have not renewed their car insurance. The study confirmed a correlation between unemployment and the number of drivers with no insurance.

Drivers who comply with their state's law, by having insurance, cover the losses caused by uninsured driver, to the annual tune of almost 11 billion dollars. However, as attorneys representing accident victims for more than 20 years, we have seen too many clients who are unable to recover for their medical bills, lost wages and permanent injuries because they did not have uninsured motorist coverage.

Contrary to the statements of many insurance agents, who tell their customers that they do not need uninsured motorist coverage if they have health and disability insurance, our experience shows that having uninsured motorist coverage is the only way to guarantee a source of recovery should you be the victim of an accident.

The Florida Legislature, acting upon the wishes of the insurance industry, one of their biggest contributors, passed a bill which will allow those insurance companies to remove sinkhole coverage from their policies. The bill then permits the insurance companies to re-sell the coverage back to home and business owners at a much higher premiums.

This bill, along with many others working their way through the Florida Legislature, place insurance companies' rights and profits ahead of the interests of homeowners. Even some Republican Senators agree that this bill will allow insurance companies to make a financial killing at the expense of homeowners.

Too often, homeowners fail to notify their state representatives and senators of their displeasure with pending legislation; that is, until after a bill, such as this one, becomes law. We urge all homeowners, especially those who are also registered voters, to immediately contact their representative and senator and let them know that their jobs as legislators are in jeopardy, should they continue to pass laws which place insurance company profits above the rights of the individuals who voted them into office.