Hit and Run Insurance Claims

If you have been involved in a hit-and-run accident in Maryland, you want to know what your legal rights are. Our Maryland hit-and-run lawyers have handled scores of hit-and-run insurance claims. This page explains how insurance claims work in hit-and-run car and phantom vehicle car accidents in Maryland and what the settlement value of these cases usually is.

It is illegal in Maryland, of course, for a driver to flee the scene of a motor vehicle collision if the driver was potentially involved in the crash. Despite these laws, people panic and flee the scene. There are also cases where a driver causes an accident but never sees the impact of his negligence. (A perfect example is cutting someone off that sets off a chain of events that leads to a crash.) Hit-and-run car accidents kill approximately 2,000 Americans a year and injure countless others. The question is: do you have a claim when this happens?

How Do You Make a Hit-and-Run Insurance Claim After an Accident?

Thankfully, there is a mechanism in Maryland law to recover your damages in these cases. How? When you (or whoever it was that was paying the insurance on the vehicle you were driving) pay our automobile insurance every month, one of the things you are paying for is insurance coverage in the event someone hits you or pushes you off the road and flees the scene before you identify them. It is one of the protections provided in your uninsured motorist coverage. The law assumes, for your claim, that the at-fault driver who fled the scene had no insurance. Because for all practical purposes for you, she didn’t.

What happens here is that the insurance company steps in and, in every way that matters, becomes the insurance company for the at-fault driver. This pits you against your own insurance company which leaves people with a bad taste in their mouths. But it beats the alternative — having no way to get compensation for your loss because there is no one to bring an action against.

You need to have a viable tort claim against the responsible party and could have obtained a favorable judgment had the at-fault driver been found. So you still have to establish that the driver negligently caused or is otherwise legally responsible for the accident. The insurance company can maintain all of the defenses that the at-fault driver would have had if they had been sued.

In sum, you are legally entitled to money damages under Maryland law for your uninsured motorist hit-and-run insurance claim if you would have had a viable tort claim against the true at-fault driver if that driver had been found. The amount of the money damages will be exactly what you would have recovered from the at-fault driver at trial if he had been sued. After all of the legal maneuvering and posturing, it usually comes down to a dispute as to how much the plaintiffs’ injuries are worth. Often we agree with the insurance company on every single aspect of the case except the real issue: what the claim is worth.

Is Their Insurance Coverage for Phantom Vehicle Accidents?

As alluded to above, calling these claims “hit-and-run” is too narrow. Physical contact with the at-fault vehicle is not required. These are often called “phantom vehicle” cases. The classic example is when another driver forces you off the road or cuts you off, causing a collision. Our law firm has many of these types of claims. In a few of these cases, we ultimately believed the at-fault driver never knew they had caused an accident. They never looked back to see the consequences of their mistake.

The burden of proof for a hit-and-run insurance claim still rests with the victim. The jury decides whether the victim has proved that it is more likely than not that the crash was proximately caused by the negligence of the driver of the phantom vehicle.

But hit-and-run claims are generally relatively easy to prove. The witnesses are usually the victims and the witnesses. The person who fled the scene of the accident is not going to be there to defend himself. So usually it is the word of one or more witnesses against none.

Jury Verdicts and Settlement Amounts in Hit-and-Run Insurance Claims

Below is a listing of some sample jury payouts and out-of-court settlement amounts in hit-and-run motor vehicle accident cases in Maryland and around the country. These are both good and not-so-good results.

Either way, keep in mind that every case is decided, in the end, on the merits of that claim. There are so many different variables involved in each claim. Making things even more complicated, if you try the same case 10 different ways, you will get 10 different results. So why even make this information available? Our hit-and-run attorneys still think they are instructive – with other sources of information – in getting an idea of the reasonable range of probable compensation values in certain types of lawsuits.

Let’s start with Maryland:

Maryland Hit-and-Run Settlements and Verdicts

2023, Maryland: $40,000 Settlement: The plaintiff was traveling in a southbound direction when a non-party motorist, traveling northbound on the same road, crossed the double yellow lines into his lane of travel and struck his vehicle head-on before fleeing the scene. At the time of the accident, the plaintiff was covered under an automobile policy issued by defendant Allstate that included uninsured/underinsured motorist provisions. The plaintiff claimed he suffered injuries. After his claim for UIM benefits was denied, the plaintiff alleged the defendant failed to provide him with such sums as he was entitled to pursuant to the terms of his insurance contract with the defendant, even though the insurance coverage for the non-party driver and vehicle owner was insufficient to cover the full extent of his damages.
2021, Maryland: $30,000 Verdict: The victim is driving on Springlake at its intersection with Northern Parkway in Baltimore City. He is rear-ended by a driver who then runs away. Elephant Insurance goes all in even though the verdict is capped at $30,000 by the insurance policy. Elephant spends a fortune to bring in Dr. Louis Halikman, M.D., one of the most prolific experts for defendants in Maryland who makes a truckload of money testifying for insurance companies. They also bring in Dr. Michael Sellman, M.D., a neurologist, who also testifies regularly in Baltimore car accident lawsuits. But the verdict is still for the maximum $30,000 policy limits. But that is often the problem with hit-and-run insurance claims. You are capped at your own insurance policy limits.
2021, Maryland: $12,000 Settlement: This is a hit-and-run lawsuit in Baltimore with an unimpressive outcome. A woman was driving her car on Liberty Heights Avenue near its intersection with North Rogers Avenue in Baltimore. A tractor-trailer rear-ended her and fled the scene. She had injuries to her head, back, neck and wrist. But, for some reason, her lawyers settled the case with Liberty Mutual for $12,000.
2020, Maryland: $145,000 Verdict: An unknown motorist struck a woman’s vehicle and left the scene. The woman suffered sciatica and cervical radiculopathy, post-traumatic stress disorder, and soft-tissue neck and back injuries. She underwent chiropractic and physical therapy for treatment. The woman alleged that her insurer, Erie, failed to pay her the uninsured motorist benefits it was obligated to pay. Erie Insurance made the classic “she was not hurt all that bad” defense. The Baltimore City jury awarded a $145,000 verdict. The award was reduced to $100,000 because that was the amount of her uninsured motorist policy. (In some states, you would get the entire award plus additional compensation when you hit the insurer for more than the policy limits.)
2018, Maryland: $105,945 Verdict: A woman sustained knee and foot injuries after another vehicle struck hers. The vehicle left the scene, but she followed it and identified its driver. After settling with the driver’s liability carrier, she sued her underinsured carrier. The plaintiff sustained a meniscus tear that necessitated surgery. She also had a foot sprain and strain. The jury awarded her $105,944.87 in damages.
2017, Maryland: $103,000 Verdict: A woman suffered left arm and shoulder injuries after an unknown motorist changed lanes, struck her vehicle, and left the scene. She hired a Baltimore hit-and-run attorney and filed against State Farm for failing to pay her UIM coverage. State Farm contested the woman’s claims, arguing that she was partly at fault for the collision. They also disputed whether her medical treatments were necessary. The Baltimore City jury awarded a $103,000 verdict.

Let’s look at some jury compensation awards and settlement amounts for victims outside of Maryland:

2024, Nevada: $250,000 Settlement: Plaintiff, a 13-year-old male, was reportedly injured when, while riding his bicycle in a crosswalk, he was struck by a hit-and-run driver. The plaintiff was covered under a policy issued by State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company. The case was settled and the parties sought court approval.
2024, New Jersey: $100,000 Settlement: The plaintiff, two-years-old, was reportedly crossing a street as a pedestrian when she was struck by a hit–and–run vehicle driven by an unidentified driver. The plaintiff suffered abrasions to her forehead, left cheek and upper lip.

The plaintiff was reportedly entitled to uninsured motorist benefits pursuant to an automobile policy with defendant GEICO.
2022, Louisiana: $15,000 Verdict: A woman and her passenger struck head-on. The driver who hit them fled the scene. The woman injured her neck and back. Her passenger suffered back, knee, hand, and wrist injuries. The two alleged negligence against the at-fault driver. They claimed he failed to timely brake, drive attentively, and remain at the scene after the collision. The two received $15,000.
2021, Washington: $88,171 Verdict: A 20-year-old woman was rear-ended. The driver who hit her fled the scene. She suffered spinal sprains and strains and the aggravation of her pre-existing scoliosis. The woman underwent physical therapy for 14 months. She made a UIM claim. The jury awarded $88,171.
2021, California: $10,000,000 Verdict: A 21-year-old pedestrian was struck. He died from his injuries. The at-fault driver fled the scene. He also tried to burn his car. The man’s family alleged negligence against the at-fault driver. They claimed he drove while intoxicated, failed to yield to a pedestrian, and failed to remain at the accident scene. The jury awarded $10,000,000.
2021, South Carolina: $23,500 Settlement: A minor boy rode in his mother’s vehicle. They were struck by a phantom driver that left the scene. The boy suffered head injuries. He required medical treatments. The boy’s mother made a UIM claim. This case settled for $23,500.
2021, Oklahoma: $34,200 Settlement: A woman and her two children were T-boned. They suffered personal injuries. The at-fault driver fled the scene on foot. The woman alleged negligence against the at-fault driver. She claimed she failed to yield to a stop sign and remain at the accident scene. This case settled for $34,200.
2020, California: $50,000 Settlement: This hit-and-run case concerned an intoxicated defendant, who collided with the plaintiff’s vehicle, injuring her and her two children, a son and daughter. Despite fleeing the scene of the accident, witnesses apprehended the defendant. The plaintiffs visited the emergency room after the collision. The mother experienced soft tissue neck and back injuries. Her son experienced a collarbone abrasion, while her daughter experienced a soft tissue neck injury. The plaintiff and her two children claim that the accident traumatized them. This case reached a confidential settlement amount of $50,000 (which is why the parties are not named).
2019, Connecticut: $478,218 Verdict: An unknown motorist ran a red light, T-boned a man’s vehicle, and fled the scene. The man and his passenger suffered multiple spinal injuries. They alleged that the man’s insurer, Safeco, refused to pay his UIM benefits. The jury awarded the man $201,298 and his passenger $274,920. Their verdict totaled $478,218.
2018, New York: $300,000 Settlement: A motorist rear-ended a 40-year-old man’s bicycle and left the scene. The man suffered closed head trauma, which was resolved without permanent cognitive issues. He also sustained a shoulder fracture, which he underwent conservative treatment for. The man was hospitalized for a week and was subsequently transferred to a rehabilitative facility for an additional week. He missed several months of work. This case settled for the man’s entire $300,000 uninsured motorist policy.
2014, Florida: $2,000,000 Settlement: After abandoning their malfunctioning vehicle on Interstate 95, a young couple went walking along State Road 44 in New Smyrna Beach to find assistance. They were struck and killed by a plumbing van that sped off without hesitation, leaving the two to die in the grass along the shoulder. Eventually, the driver was found and arrested for leaving the scene of a fatal accident, and driving with a suspended license. The families of the couple hired a lawyer and filed a hit-and-run insurance claim in court, suing the driver and his employer for negligence. Plaintiffs claimed the driver was negligent in the operation of his vehicle and his employer was vicariously liable for his actions.

Do You Need a Lawyer for Your Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist Claim?

Our law firm handles motor vehicle accident cases. If you want to discuss your potential Maryland hit-and-run insurance claim with an experienced attorney, call 800-553-8082 or get a free online internet consultation.

Sample Uninsured Motorist Court Documents

Uninsured interrogatories
Sample complaint

Maryland Uninsured Motorist Law

An explanation of UM coverage in Maryland
UM statute
Classic phantom vehicle accidents: single-vehicle crashes