Uninsured & Underinsured Motorist Claims · Greater New Orleans
Metairie & New Orleans Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist Lawyer
You did everything right. You bought insurance, you drove carefully — and then someone with no insurance, or barely any, crashed into your life.
In Louisiana, roughly one in five drivers on the road has no insurance at all, and many more carry only the state minimum. When that driver hits you, the compensation often has to come from a place most people never think about: your own policy. At Bono Law Firm, we've helped injured people across Louisiana since 1980, and uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM) claims are one of the largest parts of our practice. If you've been hit by a driver with no insurance or not enough, you talk directly with an attorney named Bono — John C. Bono or Michael P. Bono — not a case manager, and you pay nothing unless we recover money for you.
Some firms are built for volume. Bono Law Firm is built for personal attention.
What UM coverage actually is
Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage is part of your own auto policy, and it steps in when the at-fault driver can't pay: when they have no insurance, when they flee the scene in a hit-and-run, or when their coverage runs out before your damages do. Louisiana law requires insurers to include UM coverage in every auto policy unless you rejected it in writing on a state-approved form — so many people have this protection without realizing it. If you're not sure whether you have UM coverage, that's exactly the kind of question we answer for free.
Why UM claims matter so much in Louisiana
Louisiana's minimum required coverage is among the lowest in the country — $15,000 per person for bodily injury. One night in a hospital can exhaust that. So even when the other driver technically "has insurance," a serious injury quickly becomes an underinsured motorist claim: their policy pays its limit, and your UM coverage is what stands between you and the rest of the bills. This is why we tell every client, friend, and family member the same thing — UM coverage is the most important coverage you can buy in this state.
One more reason to carry it: if you're ever in a crash while driving uninsured yourself, Louisiana's "No Pay, No Play" law can bar you from recovering the first $100,000 in bodily-injury damages — even if the other driver was at fault. Carrying your own coverage, including UM, is what keeps you out of that trap.
Your own insurance company is not automatically on your side
Here's what surprises people most: when you make a UM claim, you're asking your own insurer to pay — and they evaluate and fight that claim much like the other driver's insurer would. They may question your injuries, your treatment, or your share of fault. The difference is that Louisiana law holds insurers to a duty of good faith with their own policyholders, and an insurer that arbitrarily delays or lowballs a valid UM claim can owe penalties on top of the claim itself. Knowing when that line has been crossed — and proving it — is lawyer's work, and since 1980 we've learned exactly how these companies value these cases.
What to do if you were hit by an uninsured driver
- Call the police and get a report. Documentation that the other driver was uninsured or fled matters enormously to your UM claim.
- See a doctor right away, even if you feel okay. Gaps in treatment are the first thing an insurer uses against you.
- Don't assume there's no money because the other driver had no insurance. Your UM coverage, other household policies, and other sources may all apply.
- Don't give a recorded statement — even to your own insurance company — before talking to a lawyer. On a UM claim, your own insurer is the one deciding what to pay you.
- Call us for a free consultation. We'll read every policy that might apply, for free, and tell you honestly what you have.
Finding every policy that applies
UM cases are policy-reading cases. The coverage available may go beyond the policy on the car you were in — depending on the circumstances, policies in your household, a policy covering a vehicle you occupied, or an employer's policy if you were working can come into play, and the deadlines for UM claims have their own rules separate from the claim against the driver. This is precisely where having a lawyer pays for itself: we find coverage people didn't know they had, and we make sure no deadline quietly closes a door. Finding every source of recovery is a big part of what makes us different — and you can see the results in our case results.
No fee unless we recover
Hit by an uninsured driver? Let's talk — for free.
Since 1980, our family firm has handled UM and UIM claims throughout Jefferson, Orleans, St. Tammany, St. Charles, and the surrounding parishes — for more than 6,000 injured Louisianans. Consultations are free, we come to you at home or in the hospital, our phones are answered 24 hours a day, and there is no fee unless we recover compensation for you.
Free Consultation — Call (504) 835-9909Direct attorney access · No fee unless we recover · Se Habla Español
Common questions
Uninsured motorist FAQ
I don't think I have UM coverage — how can I find out?
You may have it without realizing it. Louisiana requires insurers to include UM coverage in every auto policy unless you rejected it in writing on a state-approved form. We'll read your policy for free and tell you exactly what coverage you have — and look for other policies that might apply too.
The other driver had insurance — why would I need my own UM coverage?
Because Louisiana's minimum is just $15,000 per person, which a serious injury blows through fast. When the at-fault driver's policy runs out before your bills do, your underinsured motorist coverage pays the difference. "They had insurance" often isn't the end of the story.
Why do I need a lawyer to deal with my own insurance company?
Because on a UM claim, your own insurer is the one deciding what to pay you — and they evaluate and dispute it much like any other insurer would. Louisiana does hold them to a duty of good faith, and one that arbitrarily delays or lowballs a valid claim can owe penalties. Knowing when that line is crossed, and proving it, is exactly what we do.
How long do I have to file?
UM claims follow their own deadline rules, which can differ from the claim against the at-fault driver. Because those timelines and the policy language are easy to misread, it's worth a free call early so no deadline quietly closes a door on your recovery.
Hit by an uninsured or underinsured driver in Greater New Orleans? Talk to a firm that will read every policy that might apply — and hold your own insurer to the coverage you paid for.
Direct attorney access · No fee unless we recover · Se Habla Español
Serving Metairie, New Orleans, Kenner, the Westbank & Gretna, and the Northshore · Se Habla Español
