Collecting Compensation When The At-Fault Driver Dies In Minnesota

Although vehicles are much safer than they were decades ago, the fact of the matter is that thousands of Americans still lose their lives on the road every year. If you are involved in a car accident where the at-fault driver ends up passing away, you may have some questions about what this means for your injury claim. In today’s blog, we take a closer look at how you can collect compensation if you are injured in a car accident by an at-fault driver who ends up succumbing to their injuries.

At-Fault Driver Death And Injury Compensation

As we’ve talked about on this blog numerous times in the past, Minnesota is a No Fault state when it comes to car accident injury compensation. No matter who was at fault for the accident, you will begin by filing a claim through your own car insurance provider. The personal injury protection arm of your car insurance policy provides you with up to $20,000 in coverage for medical expenses and up to $20,000 in non medical expenses, like lost wages. If your expenses do not exceed either of those coverage limits, then you will only need to work with your insurance provider.

However, if the accident was severe enough that it resulted in the death of the other driver, there’s a good chance that you also suffered some significant injuries that put your expenses above these thresholds. But what’s the process for collecting compensation from an at-fault driver if they are no longer alive and able to assist with the process? Despite the fact that the driver has passed away, you will still be able to file a claim against their insurance company. The easiest way to do this is by hiring a workers’ compensation lawyer. They can work with your insurance company, build your case and submit a claim to the deceased driver’s insurance company, showing that they were at fault for the damages you incurred as a result of the accident. Although the at-fault party is no longer alive, the claim’s process proceeds in a similar manner as if they were alive.

Things get a bit more complex if the other driver is underinsured or has no insurance. It is illegal to drive without car insurance, so it’s rare to run into someone without insurance, but it is possible that they could be underinsured based on the significance of your injuries. In this scenario, your injury lawyer would need to file a claim against the deceased driver’s estate. Their estate will go through the probate process in court, which involves dividing up assets, settling debts and parsing out any inheritance. If you are deemed to have a valid claim by the court, you would be compensated by the deceased driver’s estate.

Finally, if you end up in a worst-case scenario where the at-fault driver died, had little or no insurance and had no estate, you’re still not out of luck. Here you would be eligible to seek uninsured motorist compensation through the uninsured motorist arm of your car insurance policy. Your own insurance company would then be responsible for providing compensation if you can show that you have uninsured motorist coverage and that the deceased at-fault driver did not have insurance and left no estate.

Hopefully you never find yourself in this situation, but the fact of the matter is that most cases will proceed in a similar fashion regardless of the health of the at-fault driver, and this is especially true if you connect with a personal injury firm like Margolis Law Firm. We’ll handle building your case and making a strong argument to the insurance company while you focus on your health and your family. Let us take the stress and the complexity of the situation and get you the compensation you deserve.

For more information about pursuing compensation from a deceased driver who was responsible for your accident, reach out to Dean and the team at Margolis Law Firm today at (952) 230-2700.