Should I file UM coverage or wait for the hit-and-run driver to be found?

Q: Should I file UM coverage or wait for the hit-and-run driver to be found?

The one thing your landlord is hoping you never find out: your own auto policy may be the only real money available. In New Hampshire, if a driver disappears after hitting you in Portsmouth, use your uninsured motorist (UM) coverage now instead of waiting and hoping police identify the car. That is usually the smarter path because bills do not pause. If you were taken to Portsmouth Regional Hospital, or transferred to Concord Hospital or Elliot Hospital after a serious crash, Medicare may pay first, but it can still leave deductibles, copays, and reimbursement issues. UM coverage is meant for exactly this problem: a hit-and-run or an at-fault driver with no insurance. The follow-up question you should be asking is: Did I do enough to protect the UM claim? In New Hampshire, the traps are usually procedural: Call police immediately and get a report through the Portsmouth Police Department or the responding agency. If there was injury, death, or major damage, make sure the crash is reported as required to New Hampshire DMV. Notify your insurer promptly that this is a UM claim, not just a repair claim. Give your insurer the police report number, photos, witness names, and where you were hit, especially on roads like Route 1, I-95, or rural routes where farm equipment and grain trucks are more common in harvest season. Do not let the insurer treat "no plate number" as "no claim." A missing plate does not automatically defeat UM coverage. If the other driver is later found and has only New Hampshire's bare minimum liability limits, your claim may shift from UM to underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage. The key is preserving the claim early before the insurer starts looking for reasons to lowball or delay.

Question

Accepted Answer

The one thing your landlord is hoping you never find out: your own auto policy may be the only real money available. In New Hampshire, if a driver disappears after hitting you in Portsmouth, use your uninsured motorist (UM) coverage now instead of waiting and hoping police identify the car.

That is usually the smarter path because bills do not pause. If you were taken to Portsmouth Regional Hospital, or transferred to Concord Hospital or Elliot Hospital after a serious crash, Medicare may pay first, but it can still leave deductibles, copays, and reimbursement issues. UM coverage is meant for exactly this problem: a hit-and-run or an at-fault driver with no insurance.

The follow-up question you should be asking is: Did I do enough to protect the UM claim?

In New Hampshire, the traps are usually procedural:

Call police immediately and get a report through the Portsmouth Police Department or the responding agency.
If there was injury, death, or major damage, make sure the crash is reported as required to New Hampshire DMV.
Notify your insurer promptly that this is a UM claim, not just a repair claim.
Give your insurer the police report number, photos, witness names, and where you were hit, especially on roads like Route 1, I-95, or rural routes where farm equipment and grain trucks are more common in harvest season.
Do not let the insurer treat "no plate number" as "no claim." A missing plate does not automatically defeat UM coverage.

If the other driver is later found and has only New Hampshire's bare minimum liability limits, your claim may shift from UM to underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage. The key is preserving the claim early before the insurer starts looking for reasons to lowball or delay.