DADE CITY, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol said a rollover accident in Pasco County last week left a driver dead.
According to the Suncoast News, the accident happened May 31 on Darby Road near Old Darby Road in Dade City. The FHP said a man was driving eastbound in an SUV at about 3:48 p.m. when he lost control of the vehicle while approaching a curve.
The SUV went off the roadway and onto the north shoulder. When the driver over-corrected, the SUV went back onto the road, onto the south shoulder and overturned multiple times.
LARGO, FL – A car and a pickup truck were involved in a fatal collision at an intersection in Pinellas County, police said.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, the incident happened in the area of Keene Road and Belleair Road in Largo on May 28.
Largo police said the driver of a 2010 Volkswagen Jetta drove through a red light at about 8:40 p.m. and collided with a GMC Sierra pickup truck making a left turn.
Recent studies suggest that about 20% of motorists in the state of Florida are driving around without any insurance. That breaks down to about 1 in 5 drivers operating a vehicle without any insurance coverage.
If you happen to be involved in a car crash with an uninsured driver, then you are left paying for all the damages and expenses of the accident. While you may assume that your auto policy will cover everything, unless you have uninsured motorist coverage (UM), then you could be out of luck.
Florida auto policyholders have the choice of including UM coverage as an optional extra.
What is UM Coverage?
UM coverage protects a policyholder if they are involved in an automobile collision with a negligent party who has no liability insurance. When the at-fault driver’s liability limits have been reached, but there are still costs to be paid, such as property damage or medical expenditures, then UM coverage can bridge the gap in costs.
All motorists in the Sunshine State are mandated to have at least $10,000 in property damage and personal injury protection (PIP) on their auto policy.
Since Florida is a “no-fault” state as well, there may be instances where an accident results in losses that PIP and property damage liability do not cover; uninsured motorist coverage will step in and provide the necessary funding in these cases.
Do You Want Your Policy Stacked or Non-Stacked?
When it comes to purchasing these extra protections on your auto policy, the question comes up as to whether you want these stacked or non-stacked. Most people have no clue what this really means other than stacked costs more money. Our Florida Auto Accident Lawyers at Whittel & Melton want to help you understand why.
When you have your UM coverage stacked this is to provide you with more uninsured or underinsured coverage in the unfortunate event that someone hits you and they have no insurance or not enough insurance to cover all the damages.
Why do they call it stacked? Insurance can be stacked either horizontally (across numerous policies) or vertically (within a single policy). If you have a policy that is different from your auto policy, such as a motorcycle policy, then you can stack those together. If you have multiple vehicles, it becomes a multiplier to your policy and your financial protection is much better than unstacked coverage.
Likewise, if you have stacked insurance, then your UM coverage follows you everywhere. It follows you when you are in your roommate’s car, it follows you in a rental car, it follows you when you are on a school bus, and more, so you are essentially always protected in a car accident. Sometimes when your UM coverage is non-stacked, coverage can be limited to just the vehicles on that policy, and you do not want that to happen when you are in a bad accident with somebody that has no insurance or not enough insurance. Continue reading
LEESBURG, FL – A collision in Leesburg last week left one person dead and two others injured, according to police.
A report by the Leesburg News states that the accident happened on U.S. Highway 441 at Perkins Street on Wednesday morning.
Investigators said the driver of a 2007 Chevrolet sedan was headed north on Highway 441 at 11:39 a.m. When he attempted to turn left onto Perkins Street, he collided with a 2011 GMC pickup truck.
THE VILLAGES, FL – Two drivers were sent to the hospital following a collision in The Villages on Wednesday afternoon, the Villages-News reports.
Authorities responded to the scene in the area of County Road 466 and Belvedere Boulevard near The Villages Charter School.
According to Florida Highway Patrol investigators, an 86-year-old man was driving a Chevy Impala northbound shortly before 1 p.m. when he crashed into the back of a Hyundai Sonata. The impact pushed the Hyundai into the intersection, where it collided with a Chevy Tahoe. The Impala also struck the Tahoe.
BROOKSVILLE, FL – A car accident in Hernando County Monday morning claimed the life of a teenage driver, state troopers said.
According to a report by WTVT, the wreck occurred on Wiscon Road near State Road 50 in Brooksville.
The Florida Highway Patrol said an 18-year-old man was driving a Nissan Sentra east on Wiscon Road when he lost control of the car. The Nissan rotated off the highway, collided with a stop sign and then a utility pole before coming to rest.
OCALA, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol said one driver was killed and another injured when their vehicles collided in Ocala.
A report by the Ocala StarBanner stated that the accident occurred May 11 at State Road 200 and Southwest 110th Street near the entrance to the Oak Run subdivision.
According to the FHP, the driver of a Nissan Altima was headed east on SR-200 and went through a red light at the intersection shortly after 10 p.m. The Nissan T-boned a Honda Insight that was coming out of the subdivision and had the green light.
GAINESVILLE, FL – Gainesville Fire Rescue said its crews responded to a significant vehicle crash last Monday night.
According to GFR’s Facebook page, the accident happened in the area of Southwest 34th Street and Williston Road at about 8 p.m. Photos from the scene showed a heavily damaged vehicle.
When firefighters arrived, they used the jaws of life and other rescue tools to extricate one person from the car within about 20 minutes.
MARION COUNTY, FL – A school bus and a sport utility vehicle were involved in a collision in Marion County Tuesday morning, WKMG reports.
An investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol found that a 61-year-old Citrus Springs woman was driving the school bus on Southwest 75th Avenue at about 7:30 a.m. and stopped at a stop sign at the intersection with Southwest 80th Street.
As the driver attempted to cross Southwest 80th Street, the FHP said she violated the right of way of an SUV driven by a 30-year-old Ocala woman. The front of the bus hit the left front side of the SUV, causing it to go off the road and hit a tree.
SUMTER COUNTY, FL – A collision in Sumter County on Saturday morning left three people dead and another injured, the Florida Highway Patrol said.
According to WFLA, the crash occurred on State Road 471 near South Grade Road. An investigation indicated that a man driving a sedan on SR-471 near the Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve veered into the opposite lane at about 4 a.m. His vehicle crashed into another sedan nearly head-on.
The driver of the first car, a 42-year-old Winter Haven man, and the driver of the second vehicle along with a 54-year-old female passengers all were killed in the accident. Another passenger in the second sedan, a 47-year-old man, was seriously injured. All three occupants of the second car were residents of Lima, Ohio.
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