Collisions involving uninsured and underinsured drivers remain a significant but often overlooked risk on California roads, placing a heavy financial burden on victims. Barry P. Goldberg, a car accident lawyer serving the Santa Clarita Valley, is drawing attention to this issue as the number of drivers without adequate coverage continues to rise. According to the Insurance Information Institute, 15.4% of drivers nationwide carried no insurance in 2023. California ranks among the worst states, with roughly one in five drivers lacking liability coverage. When underinsured drivers are included, an even larger share cannot pay for the damage caused by a serious crash.
The Protect California Drivers Act (SB 1107), effective January 1, 2025, raised California's minimum liability limits for the first time since 1967, roughly doubling required coverage to $30,000 per injured person and $60,000 per accident. However, even these increased minimums can be exhausted within days by a single serious injury, leaving the injured driver to cover the difference.
“Most people assume the other driver's insurance will cover them,” said Barry P. Goldberg, founding attorney at Barry P. Goldberg and a longtime authority on California's uninsured motorist law. “However, too often, it doesn't. When that happens, your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage becomes the difference between recovering your losses and absorbing them yourself. Knowing how to use that coverage and negotiate with insurance carriers is where legal experience matters most.”
Uninsured and underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage pays for medical bills, lost income, and other losses when an at-fault driver cannot. Recovering through one's own policy, however, often means negotiating against the same insurer that collects monthly premiums, and those claims can be as contested as cases against the other driver.
The implications for California drivers are significant. Without proper UM/UIM coverage, victims of accidents caused by uninsured or underinsured drivers may face mounting medical expenses, lost wages, and other costs without recourse. Even with the new minimum liability limits, the gap between coverage and actual costs can be substantial, potentially leading to financial hardship or bankruptcy for those unprepared.
Barry P. Goldberg offers free consultations to anyone injured in a crash in Santa Clarita and surrounding communities, including collisions involving uninsured or hit-and-run drivers. The firm handles cases on a contingency basis, meaning no upfront costs and no fees unless it recovers for the client.
