Hit-and-Run on Biscayne Boulevard — How UM Coverage Becomes Your Best Friend

A driver was hospitalized after a hit-and-run on Biscayne Boulevard just north of NE 14th Street Tuesday morning. The fleeing vehicle, described only as a dark SUV, has not been located.

Florida is one of the most heavily uninsured states in the country — roughly 1 in 5 drivers carries no insurance at all, and minimum-limits policies of $10,000/$20,000 BI are common. Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) coverage on the victim's own auto policy fills that gap.

Florida does not require drivers to carry UM coverage, but insurers must offer it in writing, and any rejection must be on a specific statutory form. We routinely find that 'rejected' UM coverage was never properly waived — which means the coverage applies even if the victim believed they didn't have it.

UM coverage 'stacks' across vehicles in a household in many cases, sometimes producing six- or seven-figure available limits where the policyholder believed there were only $25,000.