6

A friend of a friend recently had this situation come up. They were driving uninsured as a result of one of their housemates having tossed the bills as they came in. They learned they were uninsured after another car struck them and, on contacting the insurance company, being told that they had missed their payment and that the company had suspended their account. I know that Corbin vs Khosla (2002) established that an uninsured motorist can hold the at-fault driver liable for their damages, but they're also worried that, if they contact the other insurance company, then they will be reported for uninsured driving (despite that they were unaware that they were uninsured at the time) and face fines or a license suspension. As I understand it, there were no police at the site of the accident, since it was so minor, so they exchanged information, but there was no official police presence.

Is an insurance company allowed to threaten to report the uninsured driver to avoid having to pay for the driver who caused the accident? This is in Pennsylvania, in the Allegheny County area.

SCD
  • 1,160
  • 1
  • 8
  • 21

1 Answers1

14

Threatening to report the uninsured driver to avoid payment would be blackmail and illegal / criminal. As a result, they are not going to do this. Reporting the uninsured driver on the other hand is their civic duty. So they can get your friend into trouble, but they can't get around paying.

Is your friend insured now? If not, tell him to get insured IMMEDIATELY. And if they are very lucky, the other company doesn't figure out your friend was uninsured, and they get away with it when they make a claim. Alternatively, tell them to figure out how much the damage is, how much the repair will cost, and whether it is worth taking the risk.

gnasher729
  • 35,915
  • 2
  • 51
  • 94