Hit on Foot by an Uninsured Driver

People hit on foot, the cases described on our pedestrian and bicycle accidents page, often assume that car insurance only matters when they are in a car. California's uninsured motorist statute says otherwise. The coverage that every auto liability policy must include, unless it was rejected in writing, is written around people, not just around the insured car.

This guide focuses on what is different for a person on foot: who in a household is covered while walking, what happens with more than one policy, and what options remain if no one in your home has car insurance. The general rules of uninsured and underinsured claims, such as limits, arbitration and the hit-and-run conditions, are in our guide on how uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage works.

How does the claim work for a pedestrian, step by step?

List every auto policy in your home. Your own, your spouse's, and those of relatives you live with may each cover you on foot (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)).
Find the uninsured motorist limits on each policy's declarations page, and check for a signed agreement deleting or lowering the coverage, which binds everyone the policy covers (Insurance Code 11580.2(a)(1)).
Confirm the other driver is "uninsured." That includes a driver with no liability insurance, one whose insurer denies coverage, an insolvent insurer, an underinsured driver, and an unknown driver who fled, if the extra conditions are met.
Notify the insurer and keep the claim number. If the driver fled, report the crash to police within 24 hours and file a sworn statement with the insurer within 30 days after that (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)(2)).
Get written consent before settling with anyone who may be responsible; settling without it can void the coverage for that injury (Insurance Code 11580.2(c)(3)).
Protect the two-year deadline by suing the driver, reaching an agreement with the insurer, or starting arbitration by certified mail (Insurance Code 11580.2(i)).

Who is covered while walking?

The statute draws a sharp line between people tied to the named insured and everyone else. For a policy issued to an individual, the "insured" includes the named insured, the spouse, and relatives of either who live in the same household, "while occupants of a motor vehicle or otherwise." Anyone else is covered only "while in or upon or entering into or alighting from an insured motor vehicle" (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)).

Person hit while walking	Covered by the policy's uninsured motorist coverage on foot?
The individual named on the policy	Yes, in a vehicle "or otherwise"
The named insured's spouse	Yes
A relative of either who lives in the same household, such as a child, parent or sibling	Yes, while a resident of that household
A roommate or other person who is not a spouse or resident relative	No; covered only in, on, entering or leaving an insured vehicle
An employee whose only coverage is a company policy (the named insured is a business)	No; for an entity, the insured is a person in, on, entering or leaving an insured vehicle
Heirs of a covered person who died	The coverage pays sums the heirs are legally entitled to recover for wrongful death, within the limits

Two practical results follow. A person who does not own a car may still be covered through a spouse's policy or a policy of a relative they live with. And a person who moves out of a parent's home loses the "resident relative" link to that policy.

Which drivers count as uninsured, and which do not?

The statute's definition is broad: no bodily injury liability insurance or bond, an insurer that denies coverage or admits it only with a reservation, an insurer that becomes insolvent, a vehicle used without the owner's permission with no applicable insurance, an underinsured vehicle, and an unknown driver (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)). For an unknown driver, the injury must come from physical contact between that car and you, which a pedestrian who was struck meets. If a car forced you to jump out of the way and you fell without being touched, the coverage for an unknown driver does not apply.

Some vehicles never count as uninsured. They include a car owned or driven by the named insured or a resident of the same household, and a vehicle owned by the United States, Canada, a state or a local government. The coverage also does not apply when an insured is struck by a vehicle owned by an insured, unless that vehicle was being used without the injured person's consent in criminal activity documented in a police report (Insurance Code 11580.2(c)(7)). So a person hit in the driveway by a household car cannot use uninsured motorist coverage for that injury, and the question becomes whether that car's liability coverage applies. If a government vehicle hit you, the claim goes to the agency within six months (Government Code 911.2); see crashes with a government vehicle.

What if more than one policy covers me?

This can happen for people on foot, because the coverage follows the household. A young adult with her own policy who lives with her parents may be covered by both. The statute allows a policy to provide that, when more than one uninsured motorist coverage is available, damages are not deemed to exceed the higher of the limits, and are prorated between the coverages according to their limits (Insurance Code 11580.2(d)). Separately, limits for two or more vehicles or policies may never be added together or "stacked" (Insurance Code 11580.2(q)).

In practice, that means telling every insurer whose policy may apply, and letting them sort out the shares. Read the "other insurance" part of each policy, because the statute allows these terms but the policy controls how they are written.

What if no one in my home has car insurance?

Then there is no uninsured motorist coverage to claim, but the claim against the driver remains. Civil Code 3333.4 bars pain and suffering only for an injured person who was the owner or driver of a vehicle "involved in the accident" without required insurance, or a driver convicted of DUI for that crash. A pedestrian whose own car was parked at home was not the owner of a vehicle involved, so the statute's words do not reach that person. Our guide on whether an uninsured person can recover pain and suffering explains the rule.

Collecting from an uninsured driver is the harder part. If you win a judgment and it goes unpaid for 30 days, the DMV must suspend the driver's license once it receives the certified court record and the department's certificate form (Vehicle Code 16370). If the driver fled or was under the influence, the state's victim compensation program may help with some costs; see what to do after a hit-and-run. For medical bills in the meantime, our guide on who pays medical bills while the claim is pending covers health insurance and liens.

What changes the answer?

You were walking for work. The amount your insurer owes may be reduced by workers' compensation benefits paid or payable (Insurance Code 11580.2(h)(1)), and arbitration waits until your condition is stationary and ratable (subdivision (f)). See injuries while working.

Your policy has medical payments coverage. The Department of Insurance describes it as paying limited medical costs for you or others in your car; whether yours also applies on foot depends on its wording. A policy may reduce the uninsured motorist recovery by medical payments paid or due (Insurance Code 11580.2(e)).

The driver had some insurance, just not enough. Underinsured coverage applies only after every liable driver's limits are paid and proof is sent, and pays at most your limit minus what you received (Insurance Code 11580.2(p)(3) and (4)). Which policy pays which loss is laid out in our guide on claiming through your own insurance or the other driver's.

Someone rejected the coverage in writing. A written agreement deleting or lowering the coverage binds every insured under that policy, including family members on foot (Insurance Code 11580.2(a)(1)). Another household policy may still apply.

The crash was in a parking lot. The coverage is not limited to streets. Our guide on who is responsible in a parking lot crash covers the driver's and the owner's duties there.

What could this look like? An example

For example, imagine a 70-year-old woman in Petaluma who gave up her car and lives with her adult son. Crossing at a corner, she is hit by a driver who has no insurance. Her son's policy names only him, with $100,000 in uninsured motorist coverage.

Because she is his relative and lives in his household, she is an "insured" under his policy even on foot (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)). Her son reports the claim, and his insurer asks for her medical records and wage information, which she sends within 15 days (subdivision (o)). She and the insurer cannot agree on the value of her pain and suffering, so within two years of the crash she starts arbitration by certified mail (subdivision (i)), and a single neutral arbitrator decides (subdivision (f)). She also sues the driver for losses above the limits; if a judgment goes unpaid for 30 days, the DMV must suspend the driver's license (Vehicle Code 16370). This example is made up to show how the rules fit together; it says nothing about any real case.

What mistakes do people make?

Assuming car insurance does not matter because they were walking.
Checking only their own policy, and not the policies of a spouse or relatives they live with.
Missing the 24-hour report or the 30-day sworn statement when the driver fled.
Settling with an underinsured driver's company without the uninsured motorist insurer's written consent.
Letting two years pass while waiting for the insurer, without suing, agreeing, or starting arbitration.
Giving up on pain and suffering because they had no car insurance themselves.

What should I do this week?

Ask everyone in your household for the declarations page of their auto policy.
Write down the uninsured motorist limits on each, and look for any signed form lowering or deleting the coverage.
If the driver fled, confirm the 24-hour police report and send the sworn statement within 30 days.
Report the claim to each insurer whose policy may cover you, in writing, and keep the claim numbers.
Read when a driver must yield to a pedestrian so you can answer the fault questions the insurer will ask.
Mark the two-year date on your calendar; our guide on California personal injury deadlines lists the others.

Frequently asked questions

Does the coverage also protect me on a bicycle?

The same words apply: the named insured, a spouse and resident relatives are covered in a vehicle "or otherwise" (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)). Our guide on fault when a car hits a cyclist covers the riding rules.

Does my insurer have to warn me before the two years run out?

While your claim is pending, the insurer must notify you in writing at least 30 days before the time limit expires, unless it knows a lawyer represents you. If it does not, the deadline is extended by 30 days from when the notice is actually given (Insurance Code 11580.2(k)).

Does uninsured motorist coverage pay for lost wages?

It pays the sums you are legally entitled to recover from the uninsured driver as damages for bodily injury, within your limits (Insurance Code 11580.2(a)(1)), which includes lost earnings caused by the injury.

Will my insurer delay payment until the other driver's insurer decides fault?

Payment under the uninsured motorist coverage may not be delayed, or made to depend on decisions about liability under other bodily injury insurance that applies to the crash (Insurance Code 11580.2(h)).

Can my insurer go after the driver later?

Yes. An insurer that pays the claim takes over your rights against the responsible person to the extent of its payment, and may sue within three years of paying (Insurance Code 11580.2(g)).

Where do I report a hit-and-run in Sonoma County?

Inside a city, to that city's police; outside city limits, to the Sheriff or the local CHP office (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)(2)). Our page on personal injury cases in Sonoma County lists the local offices.

If an uninsured driver hit you while you were walking, contact Young Law Group today at (707) 343-0556 or through our contact page for a free consultation.

I was walking when an uninsured driver hit me: does my own car insurance help?