How common are uninsured drivers?

Just as you can’t count on all drivers acting safely, you can’t count on all drivers having insurance. Some may find it surprising just how common driving without insurance is here in the United States.

According to Insurance Research Council estimates, as of 2012, around one out of every eight of the nation’s drivers lacked auto insurance. One encouraging note is that the general trend over the past couple of decades has been a reduction in the nation’s uninsured driver rate. However, as the above estimates indicate, despite this trend, the number of uninsured drivers out there is still quite high.

The picture is even more gloomy here in Tennessee. In 2012, around one out of every five of the state’s drivers was uninsured, according to the estimates from the Insurance Research Council. Based on the 2012 numbers, Tennessee has the sixth highest uninsured motorist rate in the country.

Why do you think uninsured motorists remain so common in the United States? Why do you think Tennessee has a particularly high uninsured driver rate?

So, when a car accident happens here in Tennessee, it is certainly not out of the question for the driver responsible to not have insurance. Finding out that the driver behind an accident that injured them was uninsured can cause a person’s heart to sink. Upon such a discovery, a person may have considerable fears regarding their ability to be justly compensated for their injuries.

However, just because the person responsible for a car accident was uninsured does not mean that the crash’s victims have no options. Skilled attorneys can give individuals hurt in uninsured motorist crashes explanations of and guidance on the options available and how to pursue them.

Source: Insurance Information Institute, “Uninsured Motorists,” Accessed Sept. 8, 2016