At Kluksdal Law, we are dedicated to protecting the rights of individuals who have been injured in accidents involving uninsured or underinsured motorists. If you’ve been in a crash where the at-fault driver lacked sufficient insurance—or had no insurance at all—you may still have options to recover compensation. Our experienced attorneys help Boise residents navigate these complex claims to secure the financial recovery they deserve.
Uninsured and underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage is designed to protect you when the responsible driver doesn’t have adequate insurance to cover your medical expenses, lost wages, and other damages. Many drivers assume that their insurance policy will automatically cover all costs, only to discover that the at-fault party’s coverage is insufficient—or nonexistent. Our legal team ensures that you understand your rights and fight to maximize your claim.
If you’ve been injured in an accident with an uninsured or underinsured driver, let Kluksdal Law help you pursue the compensation you need. Contact us today for a free consultation.
When dealing with an uninsured or underinsured motorist claim, having a knowledgeable attorney on your side is crucial. At Kluksdal Law, we help clients in Boise and surrounding areas navigate the complexities of UM/UIM claims by:
Insurance companies often try to minimize or deny valid claims, even when you have UM/UIM coverage. Our team is prepared to advocate for your rights, ensuring you receive the compensation you need for medical bills, lost wages, rehabilitation costs, and pain and suffering.
And because we work on a contingency fee basis, you don’t pay unless we win your case.
Kluksdal Law has extensive experience handling uninsured and underinsured motorist claims for clients throughout Idaho. We assist individuals facing injuries from:
Dealing with the aftermath of an accident is stressful enough—fighting with insurance companies shouldn’t add to the burden. Our firm is committed to guiding clients through every step of the claims process, ensuring they receive the compensation they rightfully deserve.
Our attorneys aggressively negotiate with insurance companies to ensure you receive the full compensation allowed under your policy.
We provide clear, straightforward advice about your claim, potential challenges, and expected outcomes. You’ll always know where your case stands.
With extensive knowledge of Idaho’s insurance and personal injury laws, we know how to fight for fair settlements—and when necessary, take your case to court.
If you’ve been injured in an accident involving an uninsured or underinsured driver, don’t wait to seek legal help. Contact Kluksdal Law today for a free consultation and let us help you recover the compensation you need to move forward.
At Kluksdal Law Firm, we know that dealing with the aftermath of a car accident can be stressful—especially when the at-fault driver lacks insurance or doesn’t have enough coverage to fully compensate you. To help you better understand how uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage can protect you, we’ve put together answers to some common questions.
Whether you’re uncertain about how these coverages work, what compensation you might be entitled to, or how our attorneys can assist you in making a claim, our FAQ section is designed to provide clarity. If you have any further questions, our experienced legal team is ready to guide you every step of the way.
If you’re involved in an accident with an uninsured driver in Boise, immediately call 911 to report the collision and request medical assistance, even if injuries seem minor. Contact your own insurance company promptly to notify them of the accident and potential uninsured motorist claim, as most policies require timely notification to preserve your coverage rights.
After ensuring your safety and contacting law enforcement, exchange information with all parties involved, including names, addresses, phone numbers, and driver’s license numbers. Even though the other driver lacks insurance, obtaining their information remains essential for potential legal action and your insurance company’s investigation. Document the accident scene thoroughly by photographing vehicle damage, road conditions, traffic signals, debris patterns, and any visible injuries. Collect contact information from witnesses who observed the collision.
Request a copy of the police report, as this official documentation substantiates the accident and provides law enforcement’s assessment of fault. In Boise, you can obtain accident reports through the Boise Police Department or by visiting the Idaho Transportation Department’s crash report system. The police report establishes a factual record that supports your uninsured motorist claim and may be crucial if disputes arise about how the accident occurred.
Do not admit fault or provide recorded statements to anyone before consulting with an attorney. While the other driver may lack insurance, you still have potential recovery options through your own uninsured motorist coverage or by filing a lawsuit directly against the at-fault driver. However, pursuing judgment against an uninsured driver often proves challenging since individuals without insurance frequently lack assets to satisfy a court judgment. Your own UM coverage typically provides the most realistic path to compensation. An experienced attorney can evaluate all available coverage sources and determine the best strategy for recovering your damages.
You likely have a valid uninsured motorist (UM) claim if an at-fault driver who caused your accident has no liability insurance, their insurer denied coverage, their insurance company became insolvent, or the driver fled the scene in a hit-and-run. Underinsured motorist (UIM) claims apply when the at-fault driver has insurance, but their policy limits are insufficient to cover your total damages.
Under Idaho Code § 41-2502, insurance companies must offer UM and UIM coverage to all policyholders, though drivers can reject these coverages in writing. Unless you specifically declined UM/UIM coverage when purchasing your policy, you likely have this protection. Review your insurance declarations page to confirm your coverage limits and verify whether you carry UM, UIM, or both types of coverage. Your UM/UIM limits typically match your bodily injury liability limits unless you selected different amounts.
For UM claims involving hit-and-run accidents, Idaho law generally requires either actual physical contact between your vehicle and the fleeing driver’s vehicle, or you must establish the existence of the other vehicle through clear and convincing evidence such as witness statements, surveillance footage, or physical evidence at the scene. These requirements exist to prevent fraudulent claims while still protecting legitimate accident victims.
UIM coverage becomes available when the at-fault driver’s insurance limits fall short of compensating your full damages. For example, if your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering total $100,000 but the at-fault driver only carries Idaho’s minimum $25,000 coverage, your UIM coverage can potentially cover the remaining $75,000 up to your policy limits. Idaho offers two types of UIM coverage—”excess” coverage that adds to the at-fault driver’s payment, and “offset” or “difference in limits” coverage that subtracts their payment from your limits. Understanding which type you carry significantly affects your potential recovery, making it essential to review your policy language or consult with an attorney.
No, your insurance company will not automatically pay your UM/UIM claim without investigation and evaluation. You must file a formal claim, provide documentation of your damages, and often negotiate with your own insurer to receive fair compensation. Insurance companies evaluate UM/UIM claims similarly to third-party claims, meaning they will scrutinize fault determination and the extent of your injuries before making payment.
Filing a UM/UIM claim begins with providing written notice to your insurance company, which most policies require you to do promptly after discovering the other driver is uninsured or underinsured. Your insurer will assign an adjuster to investigate the accident, review your medical records, assess your damages, and determine how much they believe your claim is worth. Despite being your own insurance company, they have financial incentives to minimize payouts and may dispute the severity of your injuries, the necessity of medical treatments, or even your account of how the accident occurred.
For UIM claims, Idaho law historically required you to exhaust the at-fault driver’s liability coverage before pursuing your own UIM benefits. However, following the Idaho Supreme Court’s decision in Hill v. American Family Mutual Insurance Co., insureds can now make UIM claims before settling with the at-fault driver. Your UIM insurer will receive a credit or offset for the tortfeasor’s liability limits regardless of the actual settlement amount. This means settling with the at-fault driver for less than their policy limits could reduce your UIM recovery.
Many UM/UIM policies contain arbitration clauses requiring disputes over claim value to be resolved through binding arbitration rather than traditional lawsuits. Idaho law prohibits insurance companies from engaging in unfair claim settlement practices under Idaho Code § 41-1329, including misrepresenting policy provisions, failing to conduct reasonable investigations, delaying claims without reasonable basis, or failing to promptly provide explanations for claim denials. If your insurer unreasonably denies, delays, or underpays your valid claim, you may have grounds for a bad faith lawsuit in addition to your UM/UIM claim. An attorney can help negotiate with your insurer and pursue legal action if they fail to act in good faith.
Idaho law generally provides a five-year statute of limitations for uninsured and underinsured motorist claims filed under your own insurance policy, which is longer than the two-year deadline for personal injury lawsuits against at-fault drivers. However, your insurance policy may contain shorter deadlines for providing notice and filing claims, making prompt action essential to preserve your coverage rights.
While the extended five-year statute of limitations provides more time than typical personal injury claims, you should not delay taking action. Your insurance policy likely requires you to notify your insurer promptly after discovering the other driver is uninsured or underinsured. Failing to provide timely written notice could jeopardize your claim, even if you technically file within the five-year deadline. Additionally, policies often contain cooperation clauses requiring you to submit to examinations under oath, provide requested documentation, and otherwise cooperate with the insurer’s investigation.
If you need to file a lawsuit against your own insurance company to recover UM/UIM benefits—whether due to claim denial, underpayment, or disputes over claim value—the two-year personal injury statute of limitations under Idaho Code § 5-219 may apply to that legal action. Courts have not uniformly resolved when this deadline begins running, whether from the accident date, the date of claim denial, or another triggering event. This uncertainty makes consulting with an attorney early in the process critically important.
For accidents involving potential claims against government entities—such as collisions with uninsured government vehicles or accidents caused by dangerous road conditions—the 180-day notice requirement under the Idaho Tort Claims Act applies separately from your UM/UIM claim. Missing government claim deadlines does not affect your right to pursue UM/UIM benefits from your own insurer, but it could eliminate potential recovery from the government entity. An experienced attorney can identify all applicable deadlines and ensure you take timely action to preserve every available avenue for compensation.
The maximum compensation available from a UM/UIM claim is limited by your policy’s coverage limits, which typically match your bodily injury liability limits unless you selected different amounts. Within those limits, you can recover the same types of damages available in any personal injury claim, including medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses, subject to Idaho’s statutory caps on non-economic damages.
Idaho allows recovery of economic damages—including medical expenses, lost wages, future medical care, and lost earning capacity—with no statutory cap limiting these amounts. Non-economic damages for pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life are generally capped at approximately $490,512 under Idaho Code § 6-1603, as adjusted annually for inflation. This cap applies regardless of whether you pursue compensation from the at-fault driver or through your own UM/UIM coverage. Exceptions to the non-economic damage cap exist if the defendant acted recklessly, willfully, or wantonly, or if their misconduct constituted a felony.
The type of UIM coverage you carry significantly affects your potential recovery. With “excess” UIM coverage, your policy limits add to amounts recovered from the at-fault driver. For example, if the at-fault driver has $25,000 in coverage and you have $100,000 in excess UIM coverage, your total available coverage is $125,000. With “offset” or “difference in limits” UIM coverage, your insurer subtracts the at-fault driver’s limits from your UIM limits. In the same scenario, your UIM coverage would only provide $75,000 ($100,000 minus $25,000), for a total available coverage of $100,000.
Idaho law also permits stacking UM/UIM coverage in certain situations, which can combine coverage limits from multiple policies or multiple vehicles under one policy to increase your total available coverage. However, many Idaho insurers include anti-stacking provisions in their policies. Additionally, if you win a lawsuit or arbitration against your own insurer for UM/UIM benefits, Idaho law allows recovery of attorney fees, which provides leverage when negotiating disputed claims. An experienced attorney can analyze your specific policy language, identify all available coverage sources, and maximize your recovery within applicable limits.
