After a car accident caused by someone else, the at-fault driver’s insurance may be responsible for more than the repair bill. Depending on the evidence, available coverage, and severity of your injuries, a claim may include medical treatment, lost income, vehicle damage, pain and suffering, and other losses.
Insurance coverage may help pay for medical bills, lost income, and vehicle damage after a Tennessee car accident.
For injured people in Nashville and throughout Tennessee, the challenge is often not simply opening a claim. It is understanding which insurance applies, what the insurer is required to consider, and whether an early settlement offer accounts for the full impact of the crash.
This article provides general Tennessee legal information and is not legal advice. The facts, insurance policies, injuries, and deadlines in every case are different.
The At-Fault Driver’s Insurance Usually Pays First
Tennessee is generally an at-fault state for car-accident claims. That means the driver – or another party – whose negligence caused the wreck may be legally responsible for the losses the crash caused.
The at-fault driver’s liability insurer is commonly the first source of recovery. Tennessee requires drivers to carry at least:
- $25,000 in bodily-injury liability coverage per injured person
- $50,000 in total bodily-injury coverage per accident
- $25,000 in property-damage liability coverage per accident
Those are minimum required limits, not a guarantee that the available coverage will fully compensate an injured person. A serious injury can quickly exceed a $25,000 policy limit, particularly where emergency treatment, imaging, surgery, rehabilitation, lost work, or permanent impairment is involved.
If you were hurt in a crash, a Tennessee car accident lawyer can review the collision, available insurance, medical evidence, and potential sources of recovery.
What a Liability Claim May Include
When another driver is at fault, their liability insurance may be responsible for damages that are reasonably connected to the collision. Depending on the facts, that may include:
- Emergency-room, ambulance, hospital, physician, specialist, and therapy expenses
- Future medical care and rehabilitation reasonably expected because of the injury
- Prescription medication, medical equipment, and transportation for treatment
- Lost wages and reduced earning capacity
- Damage to your vehicle and other personal property
- Rental-car costs or loss of use while your vehicle is being repaired or replaced
- Physical pain, mental suffering, inconvenience, disfigurement, and loss of enjoyment of life
- Permanent impairment or disability
- Wrongful-death damages when a collision is fatal
Insurance companies frequently evaluate the claim before an injured person knows whether treatment will resolve the condition, whether surgery is necessary, or whether symptoms will become long-term. Accepting a settlement generally ends the bodily-injury claim, even if your medical condition later becomes more serious.
For a broader overview of injury claims and available legal services, visit Shipman & Crim’s Tennessee personal injury lawyer page.
Your Own Insurance May Also Help
Even when another driver clearly caused the crash, your own insurance can be important.
Medical Payments Coverage
Medical payments coverage – often called MedPay – may help pay certain medical expenses regardless of who caused the accident. Whether it is available, what it covers, and how it interacts with a later liability recovery depends on the policy language.
MedPay can be particularly helpful when you need treatment before the other driver’s insurer accepts responsibility or makes payment.
Collision Coverage
Collision coverage may pay to repair or replace your vehicle after a crash, subject to your deductible and policy terms. Your own insurer may later seek repayment from the at-fault driver’s insurer through subrogation.
Using collision coverage does not necessarily mean you are admitting fault. It may simply be the fastest way to get your vehicle repaired or replaced while fault and liability are being investigated.
Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage
If the at-fault driver has no insurance, cannot be identified after a hit-and-run crash, or does not carry enough coverage to compensate you fairly, uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage may apply.
Tennessee automobile policies generally include uninsured-motorist coverage unless the named insured rejects it in writing or selects lower limits within the limits allowed by law. The policy’s terms, available liability coverage, offsets, and coverage limits can significantly affect an underinsured-motorist claim.
This coverage can be especially important in serious-injury cases because Tennessee’s minimum liability limits may be inadequate for a person facing surgery, prolonged wage loss, or permanent disability.
What if the Insurance Company Blames You?
An insurer may argue that you were partly responsible for the collision – for example, by alleging speeding, distraction, failure to yield, following too closely, or failure to use reasonable care.
Tennessee follows a modified comparative-fault rule. Your recovery may be reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are found to be 50% or more at fault, you generally cannot recover damages from the other at-fault party.
That makes evidence especially important. A police report can be helpful, but it is not always the final word. Other evidence may include:
- Crash-scene photographs and vehicle-damage evidence
- Video from nearby businesses, traffic cameras, or dash cameras
- Witness statements
- 911 calls and dispatch records
- Cell-phone evidence, when relevant
- Vehicle data and accident-reconstruction analysis
- Medical records connecting the crash to the injury
For additional practical guidance, review Shipman & Crim’s Tennessee car accident articles.
Commercial and Work-Related Crashes
A collision with a tractor-trailer, delivery vehicle, company car, rideshare vehicle, or other commercial vehicle can involve insurance policies and responsible parties beyond the individual driver. Potential sources of recovery may include the employer, vehicle owner, trucking company, contractor, or another business.
These cases often require prompt investigation because evidence such as onboard data, inspection records, driver logs, dispatch communications, and video may not remain available indefinitely. If your crash involved a work vehicle or commercial driver, visit Shipman & Crim’s commercial vehicle accident lawyer page for more information.
Why Policy Limits Are Not the Same as Case Value
The amount of available insurance and the value of an injury claim are related, but they are not the same thing.
A claim’s value depends on the specific medical evidence, the nature and duration of the injury, whether the condition is permanent, the effect on work and daily activities, clear proof of fault, and available insurance. A person may have damages worth more than the at-fault driver’s policy limit. In that situation, an attorn
ey may investigate other available coverage, including an employer’s policy, a vehicle owner’s policy, a rideshare or commercial policy, or uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
A careful review should also account for medical liens, reimbursement claims, and subrogation issues before a settlement is accepted.
Important Tennessee Deadlines
In Tennessee, an injured person generally has one year from the date of the crash to file a personal-injury lawsuit. Vehicle and other property damage claims commonly have a different, three-year deadline. Do not assume that ongoing insurance negotiations preserve your right to sue; an insurer’s willingness to discuss settlement does not necessarily stop the filing deadline.
Because evidence can disappear quickly and Tennessee’s injury deadline is short, it is wise to seek legal advice early – especially after a serious collision, a disputed-fault crash, a hit and run, an uninsured-driver wreck, or an accident involving a commercial vehicle.
Speak With Shipman & Crim After a Tennessee Car Accident
If you were injured in a Nashville or Tennessee car accident that was not your fault, Shipman & Crim can help you understand the insurance available, investigate fault, collect evidence, calculate your losses, and deal with the insurance companies.
You should not have to guess whether an insurer’s offer accounts for future medical treatment, lost income, pain and suffering, or all insurance policies that may apply. Our attorneys can evaluate your situation and explain your options.
Contact Shipman & Crim for a confidential consultation with a Tennessee car accident attorney.