Can I Pursue Passenger Injury Claims In Florida?
If a passenger is hurt in a car accident, the passenger can claim compensation. A passenger’s injury claim has numerous similarities to a driver’s claim. However, there are some differences. This article focuses on passenger injury claims for Florida Auto accidents.
Are Passengers Covered by Car Insurance?
On most car insurance policies in Florida, a passenger is covered by Personal Injury Protection (PIP) insurance. This assumes the passenger did not own his own car or live with a relative on the date of the crash. 
The bodily injury (“BI”) liability insurance policy of the car that the passenger was in (“the host car”) may pay for the passenger’s medical bills, pain and suffering, and lost wages that aren’t paid by PIP.
The host car’s BI insurance only compensates the passenger if the host car’s driver caused the crash.
Can a Passenger Sue the Driver of the Same Car?
Maybe. A passenger can make a personal injury claim against the driver of the host vehicle if the driver’s negligence directly caused the accident. In Florida, the passenger’s personal injury claim against the driver of the host vehicle is usually for medical bills, pain and suffering, and lost wages that PIP hasn’t paid.
If the Passenger is the Driver relative, Can the Passenger Sue the Driver?
Most Florida vehicle insurance policies do not allow a passenger to sue the driver if the passenger was a resident relative of the driver on the date of the crash.
Is It Easier for a Passenger to Get Compensation?
All things equal, passengers have better chances of winning personal injury cases than a driver who gets hurt. In a Florida car accident case, you have to prove that a driver (other than you) was negligent in order to be entitled to compensation for:
- medical bills and Lost wages that aren’t paid by PIP.
- pain and suffering,
In almost every car accident case, one of the drivers was negligent. If a driver makes a personal injury claim, the full value of his or her case is lowered by his own percentage of fault. Since a passenger is rarely, if ever, at fault, the passenger’s full compensation value isn’t reduced. This often results in a passenger receiving more money than a driver.
Can a Passenger File an Uninsured Motorist Insurance Claim?
Maybe. Assume Lisa is riding as a passenger in a friend’s car. Lisa is injured by the negligence of an uninsured motorist. Lisa has an insurance policy that compensates $25,000 in uninsured motorist (“UM”) coverage and insures two cars.
The friend has a policy with $50,000 in UM Coverage with Liberty Mutual Insurance Company that insures the vehicle in which Lisa was riding as a passenger and one other vehicle. Lisa doesn’t live with her friend. She may stack the coverage for the two vehicles on her own policy.
Lisa may also use the friend’s coverage on the car that she was in at the time of the accident. She can’t stack coverage for her friend’s cars. Lisa has $100,000 in available UM coverage. Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. v. Searle, 379So.2d 131 (Fla. 4th DCA 1979).
Can a Passenger Who is Hurt While Working Make a Claim With His Employer’s UM Insurance?
Maybe. In Zurich American Insurance Company v Cernogorsky, Fla: Dist. Court of Appeals, 3rd Dist. 2017, the court discussed the steps to evaluate if the employee gets to use her or his employer’s UM insurance.
The first step is requesting a copy of the employer’s business automobile liability policy. You can then make a UM claim with that policy. In addition, the employee can also make a workers’ compensation claim.
Look to see if the employer’s auto insurance policy is inclusive of UM coverage. If it is, the employee may be entitled to make a UM claim.
Even if Employer’s Auto Policy Does not Have UM, Employee Might Still claim UM coverage.
If the employer’s auto policy doesn’t have UM coverage, look to see if it is a primary liability auto insurance policy, or whether it’s an excess liability policy.
The employer’s auto policy is likely primarily for cars that the employer owns or leases. The employer’s auto insurance policy would likely be excessive if the employee was driving his own vehicle. If it’s a primary liability insurance policy, the insurance firm is required to get a written rejection of UM benefits subject to Florida Statute 627.727(1)
If the insurance firm fails to get a written rejection, then the employee should get UM coverage up to the BI limits.
If the employer had an excess liability insurance policy and not a primary policy, then the insurance company is not required to get a written UM rejection, subject to Florida Statute 627.727(2).
Thus, if the policy is an excess auto liability policy, and it does not have UM coverage, the employee likely won’t receive UM coverage. If the employee is a passenger in the car, he or she is class II insured. This means that he cannot stack the UM coverage for the car on the employer’s auto policy. The employee can still file a claim for uninsured motorist (UM) insurance with his own personal car insurance.
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