AUTOMOBILE LIABILITY INSURANCE

AND CRUISER ACCIDENTS:

HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?
(This article was borrowed from our sister organization in Virginia. The article is being re-written for Maryland. however the information you learn from this article is good for any working cop in any state.)

A modern law enforcement officer, theoretically, will spend the majority of his or her professional work life behind the wheel of an automobile. This not only includes the time incurred traveling to and from the patrol station, but also the many hours a uniformed patrol officer would utilize a motor vehicle as well as the seasoned narcotics detective who may conduct a surveillance of a house from a van or motor vehicle for days on end. One of the most frequently asked questions by law enforcement officers in the Commonwealth of Virginia is the relationship between automobile liability insurance coverage and motor vehicle accidents while performing their law enforcement duties.

In the Commonwealth of Virginia, the most frequently misunderstood concept involving automobile liability insurance concerns the phrase "full coverage". Pursuant to Virginia Code §46.2-472 and §46.2-100, "full coverage" simply means that a motor vehicle has the basic liability limits which are required under the law. At this time, a motor vehicle in the Commonwealth of Virginia is required to carry a liability insurance policy which provides no less than $25,000.00 in basic liability limits per person, not to exceed $50,000.00 per accident, together with property damage liability limits of $20,000.00. This is the basic liability policy which must be provided by any insurance company authorized to sell and deliver automobile liability policies in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It should be remembered, however, that automobile liability insurance is not mandatory in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Unlike many other states, Virginia does not require automobile liability insurance for motor vehicles. If a vehicle operated in the Commonwealth of Virginia does not carry liability insurance in the amounts specified by law, the owner must pay an "uninsured motorist's fee" to the Division of Motor Vehicles. Payment of the "uninsured motorist's fee" to the Division of Motor Vehicles is not a substitute for insurance coverage and provides no insurance protection whatsoever.

Two additional areas of automobile liability insurance are required to be offered in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Under Virginia Code §38.2-2206, no automobile liability policy written and delivered in the Commonwealth of Virginia may be offered unless it provides uninsured motorist's insurance coverage. That coverage must be in the same amounts as is required pursuant to Virginia Code §46.2-472. You may be charged a separate fee for this requirement, and if this coverage is rejected, it must be done in writing. Uninsured motorist's benefits also provides coverage for claims where the defendant who is responsible for the personal injuries arising out of a motor vehicle may not have sufficient liability insurance to satisfy a claim or judgment. As a basic principle, if both parties have the minimum liability insurance limits prescribed by law, there is no protection for under insurance since both liability policies have exactly the identical liability limits. The significance of this will be demonstrated later.

Additionally, upon the request of any insured in the Commonwealth of Virginia, each liability company which issues and delivers automobile liability policies must offer provisions for payment of medical expenses and loss of income benefits. Currently, medical payments coverage is offered in increments of $2,000.00, however, a liability insurance company may offer medical payments insurance in any amount the policy holder and liability company agree. Medical payments coverage is "no-fault" in the sense that they provide compensation for reimbursement of medical expenses without regard to issues of liability or fault. Only those medical expenses which are deemed reasonable and necessary for medical, chiropractic, hospital, dental, surgical, ambulance, prosthetic and rehabilitation services or funeral expenses are generally recognized. The statute requires payment of reasonable and necessary medical expenses incurred within three (3) years of the date of the injury. Medical expense coverage, however, is not available for medical expenses which are the subject of a workers' compensation claim in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The significance of this will be demonstrated later.

The final area of automobile liability insurance which may be encountered by a professional law enforcement officer is an umbrella policy. The primary purpose of umbrella policy is to provide coverage in excess of other valid and collectable insurance. An umbrella policy may provide uninsured motorist's coverage. However, insurers issuing such policies are not required to offer, provide or make available in these policies uninsured or underinsured motor vehicle coverage pursuant to Virginia Code §38.2-2206 (J). As a consequence, most automobile umbrella policies do not include uninsured motorists or underinsured motor vehicle coverage. Umbrella policies are very popular with major trucking companies as well as self-insurers. Most modern trucking companies carry primary liability limits of between $1,000,000.00 and $5,000,000.00 per accident with umbrella policies to $20,000,000.00 or $30,000,000.00 per accident.

The law of automobile liability insurance is simply too complex and lengthy a topic to discuss in an article such as this. It should be painfully obvious from a brief review of what is required in the Commonwealth of Virginia that full coverage which most people believe they have is simply not enough protection to insure you for your own mistakes or the mistakes of others. It becomes even more painfully obvious that the modern law enforcement officer is at particular risk due to the large number of hours involved in the operation of a motor vehicle or subject to the dangers of other inattentive drivers. There are literally thousands and thousands of motor vehicle owners in the Commonwealth of Virginia who profess to be fully insured and who reside in $200,000.00 homes and operate $50,000.00 motor vehicles, but, have only basic liability limits. All it takes is one motor vehicle accident based on an inattentive roll through a stop sign and you may be financially wiped out as result of the damage you might do to another.

As a general rule, you should carry liability limits, along with uninsured motorist's coverage, for limits no less than that which is adequate to protect your own personal assets as well as retirement savings. For instance, a basic rule of thumb should be that in the Northern Virginia area, you should carry at least $300,000.00 in bodily injury protection per person and $500,000.00 of bodily injury protection per accident, together with an equal amount in uninsured motorist's coverage. That should provide sufficient and adequate protection for most of the dangers which might be encountered on the road. Medical payments coverage should be no less than $10,000.00 per insured vehicle and if you want extra special protection, purchase an umbrella liability policy which will provide you with an additional $1,000,000.00 in liability coverage. If this umbrella liability policy provides uninsured motorist's benefits, so much the better.

If you have stopped reading this article because you cannot afford these liability limits in your own automobile liability policy, you may be very surprised to see how little this additional coverage costs in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The primary cost to a motorist in the Commonwealth of Virginia is always based on the basic liability policy which is required to be offered in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Increasing the liability limits adds very little in overall costs to the policy.

Suppose you have increased the limits which we have recommended. Now what? Let us assume you are a uniformed patrol officer standing in an intersection directing traffic. While standing in the middle of the intersection, an individual accidentally hits you with their motor vehicle breaking both your legs.

If the individual who has struck you has only the basic liability limits, the total amount of compensation available to you on this liability policy is only $25,000.00, no matter how high your medical bills are or how much you incur in lost wages. If this individual does not have any liability insurance, you would be permitted under the law to make a claim under your own automobile liability policy which you have on your personal motor vehicle. If you have taken our advise, you will have sufficient liability insurance coverage to satisfy any claim or judgment. If you have failed to review and increase your liability limits, you may find yourself seriously short changed in any settlement. If this accident occurs in an off-duty capacity, you might very well exhaust your sick leave or be forced to go off the payroll if you would be out of work for an extended period of time. Again, if you have not carried sufficient liability limits, you will simply be unable to collect any additional money unless the defendant has personal assets to satisfy any judgment. He could prevent this by filing for bankruptcy and you would be left without any compensation whatsoever.

What if the police officer directing traffic was deliberately run over by a criminal? In the Commonwealth of Virginia, if the injury results from the operation of a stolen motor vehicle or the result of a criminal or intentional act, there is absolutely no liability insurance coverage available to the operator of the motor vehicle. While he may go to jail for causing the injuries to you, that would be little consolation to you if you are out of work for a year. It would be even worse if this happened in an off-duty incident. Fortunately, the intentional criminal conduct of the defendant or the fact that he was driving a stolen motor vehicle can not prevent you from filing a claim under your own personal liability policy. Again, if you have taken our advise, you will have protected yourself from accidental injuries as well as intentional criminal conduct involving the operation of a motor vehicle.

One final thought, most public safety employers in the Commonwealth of Virginia are self-insured or belong to an insurance liability pool. At a minimum, they are required to offer no more than $25,000.00 in uninsured motorist's coverage to any public safety employee who is injured as a result of an automobile accident. That coverage is available after all other sources of insurance have been exhausted and your employer may receive a credit for any workers' compensation benefits which were paid. It is too risky to believe you will be adequately protected by your employer. Workers' Compensation Benefits in the Commonwealth of Virginia are totally inadequate for compensating the seriously injured law enforcement officer. They provide only five hundred (500) weeks of basic wage indemnity payments and related medical expenses. Again, there is no requirement for health insurance to be paid under a workers' compensation claim and you may find yourself unemployed or even discharged if you can not return to your work as a police officer within a reasonable period of time.

In conclusion, it is your responsibility to adequately protect yourself and your family from the mistakes of others or your own mistakes while operating a motor vehicle. You must protect your own personal assets from a simple mistake which might result in serious personal injury to another individual in the Commonwealth of Virginia. If you routinely operate a police vehicle as part of your job duties, your chances of being involved in a serious motor vehicle accident are greatly increased. The likelihood of you being involved in an accident with a criminal or uninsured motorist is very high. If you have not taken the steps to protect yourself by purchasing adequate liability insurance for motor vehicle accidents, you may find yourself financially devastated as a result of a career ending injury. Workers' Compensation Benefits and Disability Plans currently offered by most public safety employers are wholly inadequate to protect your financial future. The time to review your automobile liability policy is now and contact your insurance agent as soon as possible to protect your financial future.

The author, Michael A. Kernbach, is a personal injury and workers' compensation attorney practicing in Fairfax, Virginia. He is a veteran of the Metro-Dade Police Department in Miami, Florida and has been engaged in the practice of representing public safety employees for many years in matters involving personal injury and workers' compensation benefits. He can be contacted at 10680 Main Street, Suite 140, Fairfax, Virginia 22030; (703) 273-0888.