If an uninsured driver causes a crash in South Carolina, you may still have insurance coverage that can help address your medical bills and other losses. South Carolina automobile policies must include uninsured motorist coverage, often called UM coverage, at least at the minimum limits required by state law. Depending on your policy and the facts of the crash, other possible sources may include medical payments coverage, health insurance, workers’ compensation, another applicable automobile policy, or a claim against another responsible person or business.
UM coverage does not usually pay each medical provider as soon as a bill arrives. A UM bodily injury claim generally seeks compensation after fault, coverage, injuries, and damages are established. Your insurer may investigate the crash, question whether treatment relates to the collision, review the reasonableness of medical care, and dispute the value of the claim.
McCutchen Vaught Geddie & Hucks, P.A. helps injured people in Myrtle Beach, Horry County, and nearby South Carolina communities identify available coverage, preserve evidence, and understand the claim process.
An uninsured at-fault driver does not necessarily mean that no insurance coverage is available.
What Uninsured Motorist Coverage Means in South Carolina 
Uninsured motorist coverage may protect you when a driver who caused a collision has no liability insurance. It may also apply in qualifying hit-and-run cases when the responsible driver or vehicle cannot be identified.
South Carolina Code Section 38-77-150 requires automobile policies issued in the state to include UM coverage. The minimum limits are tied to the liability limits in Section 38-77-140:
- $25,000 for bodily injury to one person in one accident
- $50,000 for bodily injury to two or more people in one accident
- $25,000 for property damage in one accident
The UM property damage provision may exclude the first $200 of a covered loss. These amounts are policy limits, not promised payments. The amount that may be recovered depends on the policy terms, available limits, fault evidence, the number of injured people, the nature of the injuries, and the losses supported by proof.
You can review the current South Carolina automobile insurance statutes here:
https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t38c077.php
Who Pays Medical Bills After an Uninsured Driver Crash?
Medical providers generally expect payment even when another driver caused the crash. The source that pays first may differ from the source that ultimately bears responsibility.
Possible payment or recovery sources include:
- Medical payments coverage: If you purchased medical payments coverage, it may pay covered medical expenses up to the policy limit without requiring proof that another driver was at fault.
- Health insurance: Your health plan may pay covered treatment subject to deductibles, copayments, network requirements, exclusions, and possible reimbursement rights.
- Uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage: A UM claim may seek compensation for accident-related medical expenses and other damages after liability and damages are established.
- Workers’ compensation: If the collision arose out of and occurred during your employment, workers’ compensation may provide medical and wage benefits.
- Another automobile policy: Coverage issued to a spouse, resident relative, vehicle owner, or employer may apply, depending on the policy language and your status under the policy.
- Another responsible party: A vehicle owner, employer, business, roadway contractor, product manufacturer, or other party may share legal responsibility in some cases.
- The uninsured driver: You may pursue the at-fault driver personally, although the ability to collect depends on the driver’s income, property, and other assets.
South Carolina does not require personal injury protection coverage. State law permits insurers to sell medical payments or similar no-fault coverage, but the availability and limits depend on the policy you purchased.
Keep every bill, receipt, explanation of benefits, prescription record, mileage record, and payment notice. These documents help show the financial effect of the collision and identify amounts paid by you or another benefit provider.
Does UM Coverage Pay Medical Providers Directly?
UM bodily injury coverage often works differently from health insurance or medical payments coverage. It generally does not process each treatment bill as it arrives. Instead, the UM insurer evaluates whether the uninsured driver was legally responsible and what damages resulted from the crash.
A UM bodily injury claim may include past medical expenses, future medical needs supported by evidence, lost income, pain, physical limitations, and other legally recoverable losses. Payment may occur through a negotiated settlement, judgment, or other resolution.
Medical payments coverage and health insurance may address bills sooner, subject to their terms. Those benefit providers may later assert reimbursement, lien, or subrogation rights against a settlement. The existence and amount of any repayment obligation should be reviewed before settlement funds are distributed.
What Damages May Be Included in a UM Bodily Injury Claim?
A UM bodily injury claim may seek many of the same categories of damages that could have been pursued against an insured at-fault driver.
Depending on the evidence, the claim may include:
- Ambulance and emergency room expenses
- Hospital care and surgery
- Diagnostic testing and imaging
- Physical therapy and rehabilitation
- Prescription medication and medical equipment
- Follow-up treatment
- Future medical care supported by medical evidence
- Lost wages
- Reduced earning capacity
- Physical pain
- Emotional distress
- Scarring or disfigurement
- Disability or permanent limitations
- Loss of enjoyment of ordinary activities
A diagnosis alone does not establish the full value of a claim. Medical records, imaging, physician opinions, wage documents, tax records, photographs, and testimony about daily limitations may help connect the collision to your losses.
Fault still matters in a UM claim. Learn more about how responsibility is evaluated in South Carolina car accident cases:
https://lawyersatthebeach.com/blog/how-fault-is-determined-in-south-carolina-car-accident-cases/
What About Vehicle Damage and Transportation Costs?
UM property damage is separate from UM bodily injury coverage. It may address covered damage to your vehicle or other insured property, subject to policy limits, exclusions, and the possible $200 deductible allowed by South Carolina law.
Collision coverage may also pay for vehicle repairs or a total loss, regardless of whether the other driver had insurance, subject to the collision deductible and policy terms. Rental expenses or loss-of-use costs may depend on rental reimbursement coverage, UM property damage provisions, or the facts of the claim.
Do not assume that a bodily injury settlement includes vehicle damage. Ask the insurer to identify which coverage applies to each part of the loss.
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Steps to Take After a Crash With an Uninsured Driver
Protect your health, preserve evidence, and give required notice as soon as reasonably possible.
- Call law enforcement. Ask for an official collision report. Do not rely on a promise that the other driver will pay later.
- Seek medical care. Some injuries become more noticeable after the initial shock fades. Describe your symptoms accurately and follow reasonable treatment recommendations.
- Photograph and record the scene. Capture vehicle positions, damage, road conditions, traffic controls, debris, skid marks, visible injuries, license plates, and insurance documents.
- Collect witness information. Get names, telephone numbers, email addresses, and a brief description of what each person observed.
- Notify your insurer. Policies often require prompt notice. Provide accurate basic facts. Consider legal guidance before giving a detailed recorded statement or signing a broad medical authorization.
- Request the policy and declarations page. These documents may identify UM limits, medical payments coverage, collision coverage, listed vehicles, named insureds, and endorsements.
- Preserve digital evidence. Save dash camera footage, mobile telephone photographs, location data, text messages, and communications with insurers. Ask nearby businesses or homeowners to preserve security video before it is overwritten.
- Create a claim file. Keep medical records, bills, receipts, wage information, repair estimates, photographs, the collision report, and every insurance letter or email.
A broader South Carolina claim checklist is available here:
What Happens in a Hit-and-Run Case?
South Carolina law may treat an unknown hit-and-run driver as an uninsured motorist, but Section 38-77-170 places specific conditions on these claims.
The crash must be reported to an appropriate police authority within a reasonable time under the circumstances. You must also satisfy at least one of these conditions:
- The unknown vehicle made physical contact and caused the injury or damage.
- Someone other than the owner or operator of the insured vehicle witnessed the crash and signs the required affidavit. When the affidavit cannot be obtained, the insured may seek a court order for a presuit deposition under Rule 27 of the South Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure.
- An electronic or other recording shows that the unknown vehicle caused the injury or damage.
You must also show that your failure to identify the vehicle and driver was not caused by your negligence.
Evidence can decide whether a no-contact claim proceeds. Preserve dash camera footage, nearby business video, residential security recordings, witness details, photographs, and vehicle data.
Can You Sue the Uninsured Driver?
Yes. The absence of insurance does not erase the at-fault driver’s potential legal responsibility. You may bring a personal injury or property damage claim against that driver.
The practical issue is collection. A judgment confirms a legal obligation, but it does not guarantee payment. Some uninsured drivers have limited collectible income or property. Others may own real estate, operate a business, have employment income, or have another source from which a judgment may be collected.
A lawsuit may also be needed to establish the uninsured driver’s legal liability for a UM claim. Under Section 38-77-150, the UM insurer must receive copies of the pleadings and has the right to appear and defend in the uninsured motorist’s name in an action that may affect the insurer’s liability.
This arrangement can feel unusual because your own insurer may dispute fault, causation, treatment, or damages while providing the UM coverage involved.
Could More Than One Policy Apply?
A crash may involve several vehicles, household members, employers, and insurance policies. Depending on the facts and policy language, more than one source of UM coverage may need to be reviewed.
South Carolina insurers must offer optional UM coverage above the mandatory minimum, up to the insured’s liability limits. Insurers must also offer underinsured motorist coverage, called UIM coverage, up to the insured’s liability limits. UIM may apply when the at-fault driver has liability insurance, but the available liability limits are not enough to cover proven damages.
The ability to combine coverage, sometimes called stacking, depends on the policy, the vehicles involved, your status as an insured, and South Carolina law. Do not assume that each listed vehicle automatically provides another full policy limit.
A coverage review may include policies issued to:
- You
- Your spouse
- Resident relatives
- The owner of the vehicle you occupied
- Your employer
- Another business or organization connected to the trip
How Long Do You Have to Act?
South Carolina generally applies a three-year statute of limitations to many personal injury actions under Section 15-3-530. The deadline may be shorter or calculated differently when a government entity, minor, unknown driver, deceased person, or another special circumstance is involved.
Insurance policies may also impose notice, cooperation, proof-of-loss, and claim duties that arise long before the lawsuit deadline. Waiting can weaken a case because video may be erased, witnesses may relocate, memories may fade, and damaged vehicles may be repaired or destroyed.
Prompt action does not require accepting an early settlement. It means preserving evidence, confirming coverage, completing required notices, and protecting your right to pursue the claim.
The South Carolina limitation statute is available here:
https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t15c003.php
How an Attorney Can Help With a UM Claim
An uninsured motorist claim combines injury law, evidence, and insurance contract issues. An attorney can:
- Investigate how the crash occurred
- Identify potentially applicable policies
- Request coverage information and declarations pages
- Preserve surveillance and dash camera footage
- Interview witnesses
- Review medical evidence
- Document lost income and other damages
- Address reimbursement or lien claims
- Communicate with insurance adjusters
- File and serve required legal papers
- Evaluate settlement offers
- Prepare the case for litigation when needed
Legal help may be useful when the insurer claims that you caused the crash, your treatment was unrelated, your medical care was excessive, coverage does not apply, or your injuries are less serious than the records show.
Learn more about the firm’s car accident and personal injury services:
https://lawyersatthebeach.com/myrtle-beach-car-accident-lawyers/
https://lawyersatthebeach.com/personal-injury-attorneys-in-horry-county-sc/
Frequently Asked Questions About Uninsured Driver Medical Bills
Can my insurer deny a UM claim even though I paid for the coverage?
Yes. The insurer may dispute whether the policy applies, whether the uninsured driver caused the crash, whether your injuries resulted from the collision, or whether the requested damages are supported. A coverage purchase does not guarantee payment of every claim.
What if the at-fault driver has insurance, but the limits are too low?
UIM coverage may apply when the at-fault driver has liability insurance that is insufficient to cover your proven damages. UIM is optional coverage that South Carolina insurers must offer.
Should I use my health insurance after the crash?
Using available health insurance may help you receive care while the liability and UM claims are pending. Your plan may require deductibles, copayments, network compliance, and reimbursement from a later settlement. Keep all insurance statements and payment records.
Can I make a UM claim if I was a passenger?
Possibly. Coverage may come from the policy on the occupied vehicle, a policy issued to you, or another applicable household policy. The answer depends on the policy language and your status as an insured.
Speak With a Myrtle Beach Car Accident Attorney
An uninsured driver crash can leave you managing medical treatment, missed work, vehicle damage, and several insurance questions at once. McCutchen Vaught Geddie & Hucks, P.A. offers free consultations for personal injury matters. The firm can review the crash, available coverage, evidence, possible responsible parties, and deadlines without promising a particular result.
Call (843) 277-1667 or visit:
https://lawyersatthebeach.com/contact-us/
The firm assists clients in Myrtle Beach, Horry County, and nearby South Carolina communities.
This article is for general informational purposes only. It is not legal advice, does not create a lawyer-client relationship, and should not replace advice from an attorney about your specific situation.
