What Insurance Is A Driver Required To Carry In Arizona?

Arizona requires every single driver to carry liability insurance covering at least 25,000 dollars in bodily injury per person and 50,000 dollars per accident, along with 15,000 dollars in property damage coverage as the minimum legal standard required by state law and enforced by the Department of Transportation across the state. These minimums represent the legal floor set by the state, not necessarily an amount sufficient to cover a genuinely serious injury involving surgery, hospitalization, or long-term care after a crash.

What Happens If My Damages Exceed The Other Driver's Limits?

This happens more often than people expect, particularly in a crash involving significant medical treatment or a lengthy hospital stay afterward and follow-up care. A Glendale car accident lawyer will typically look at the injured person's own policy next, since uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage can fill the gap once the at-fault driver's liability limits have been exhausted entirely by the medical bills.

Is Uninsured Motorist Coverage Automatically Included?

Not exactly, which genuinely surprises many drivers who assume otherwise when purchasing a policy for the very first time. Arizona insurers are required to offer uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage with every policy, but a driver can reject this coverage in writing at the time the policy is purchased and signed. Many people do not realize they declined this protection until after a crash, which makes reviewing an existing policy well worth doing before an accident ever happens to anyone driving in the state.

What If The Other Driver Has No Insurance At All?

Arizona does not operate under a true no-fault insurance system at all, so an injured person generally has to pursue a claim against the at-fault driver directly, or rely on their own uninsured motorist coverage if the other driver carries no insurance whatsoever at the time of the crash itself.

  • Uninsured motorist coverage can step in when the at-fault driver has none at all to offer them
  • A claim can still be pursued against the driver personally in some cases anyway
  • Health insurance may cover initial treatment while a claim gets sorted out later on
  • Documenting the crash thoroughly still matters even without insurance involved

Does Fault Get Shared Between Multiple Drivers?

Yes, and Arizona's pure comparative negligence rule allows an injured person to recover damages even if they share some responsibility for the crash itself, with the recovery simply reduced by their own percentage of fault involved in the incident. This rule generally works in favor of an injured driver compared to states with stricter fault thresholds that can eliminate recovery entirely once a certain percentage is reached during litigation.

How Do I Know If My Claim Is Worth Pursuing Beyond Minimum Coverage?

A Glendale car accident lawyer can review the medical treatment received, ongoing symptoms, and lost income to help determine whether a case likely exceeds the at-fault driver's available coverage limits from every possible angle available. This evaluation often reveals additional sources of recovery a driver would not have identified on their own without professional guidance and legal experience in this area.

How Long Do I Have To File A Claim After A Crash?

Arizona's statute of limitations for most car accident claims generally runs two years from the date of the collision itself occurring on any roadway in the state. Gathering medical records, repair estimates, and witness statements takes real time, so starting that process early gives a claim the best chance of being built thoroughly before the deadline arrives and options narrow further.

How Do I Talk Through My Car Accident Claim?

Wyatt Injury Law Personal Injury Lawyers has represented injured drivers throughout Glendale and understands how insurance coverage gaps often complicate a straightforward crash in ways many people never expect to encounter at all. Reach out so we can review your policy and the accident together to identify every source of recovery available to you and your family members involved.