Connecticut law requires insurance companies to
protect their customers when they are injured in car
accidents by drivers
who have no insurance.
This coverage is generally provided under the
policy’s Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist
(called "UM" for short) provisions.
To see how UM works, please see our What If ... section
about Uninsured
Motorists.
Thanks to the Connecticut Supreme Court, the UM
part of your automobile insurance policy also protects you
if you an unknown driver makes a sudden, unexpected move
and causes you to swerve and crash.
On May 6, 1989, while driving on I-95 in Guilford,
William Streitweiser was cut off by a driver, lost control
of his 1979 Cadillac, struck a lightpole and was injured. Mr. Streitweiser’s attorney took his car accident case to
the Connecticut Supreme Court. The justices ruled
that UM insurance covered these kinds of swerve-and-run
car accidents. Streitweiser
v. Middlesex Mutual Assurance Co., 219 Conn. 371, 593
A.2d 498 (1991).
Your explanation of what happened — by itself — can be enough for you to get compensated for a swerve-and-run
car accident.
When Dean Raffile woke up in the hospital with a
fractured neck, he had no memory of how his auto accident
happened. Three
weeks after an operation, he suddenly remembered a yellow
Pontiac or Chevrolet station wagon had come out of a dirt
driveway at a curve and caused him to swerve into a
telephone pole.
The insurance company argued that Dean’s word
should not be enough to support a swerve-and-run auto accident
case. The
Connecticut Supreme Court disagreed. The court ruled
that if a jury believes the victim of a swerve-and-run
accident, then the insurance company has to pay out for the
personal injury claim. Keystone Ins.
Co. v. Raffile, 225 Conn. 223, 622 A.2d 564 (1993).
At Serrano & Serrano, we know Connecticut auto
accident and personal injury law. We are
familiar with Connecticut case law (court rulings on car
accident cases) that can help you be
compensated for your injuries if you are hurt in a motor vehicle
accident.
And if the insurance company will not settle your
car accident case for a
reasonable amount, we have the skill and experience to
forcefully and effectively present our your personal
injury case to a
jury.
When
You Need a Connecticut Accident Lawyer,
Rely
on Us for Skill, Determination and Experience.
