Must a negligent driver have enough insurance to cover my medical bills?

The short answer is “no,” according to Northern Virginia crash injury Lawyer Doug Landau. Under Virginia law, the minimum limits a driver must carry are often far too low to fully compensate someone seriously injured in a crash, even when the consequences are catastrophic. The minimum limits a driver must have under Virginia law is $50,000 per person and $25,000 for property damage per incident, even if they hit a school bus, plow into a preschool class field trip or a peloton of bikers from the Reston Bike Club!” In other words, the severity of the harm does not increase the amount of insurance available.

Nobody wants to get left behind. Not when racing, and certainly not when it comes to having adequate insurance coverage after a bad bike crash, rush hour car collision or interstate highway truck wreck. That is why it is important to review your own car insurance policy, and those for everyone in your household, to make sure that if you are injured by an uninsured driver or in a “hit and run,” there is adequate resources to cover medical bills, lost wages, expensive medications and other costs. Doug Landau is shown here leading riders from Great Britain, South Africa and Australia during the Triathlon World Championships in October.

We settled a case where our client was in the INOVA Fairfax ICU with multiple, life-threatening injuries. But, because the unsafe driver who struck this bicycle riding cleint had minimal car insurance and our our client’s household only had several hundreds of thousands of dollars more, we could not collect the 7-figure settlement the case would have supported had there been sufficient insurance coverage and assets to satisfy.

In another recent case handled by friends at the Curcio law office, another cyclist hit by a car, resulting in cervical spine fractures and lacerations. The biker sustained spine fractures that required surgery, and settled for much less than what a jury’s verdict would have been had there been sufficient insurance coverages and/or assets. The losses in this Alexandria firm’s case were significant. The plaintiff underwent spinal surgery to treat his injuries, with permanent scarring and residuals. His special damages (medical bills, medications and lost wages) were $134,258.

Experienced trial lawyers AND runners (L->R) Tom Curcio, Chris Meyers and Doug Landau at the Homestead after the annual Virginia Trial Lawyers Fun Run. This race is held in conjunction with the VTLA Annual Convention, where lawyers from around the Commonwealth and other states meet to learn, network and help each other top their game so as to better assist their clients.

In my friend’s case, the biker was riding in June of 2025 in a shared bike lane in Fairfax County when a driver traveling in the opposite direction attempted a left turn through the intersection. The plaintiff was taken to the hospital before he spoke with the responding police officers. There were several witnesses at the scene of the crash that all had different recollections, and there was controversy regarding status of the traffic light controlling the turning motor vehicle. Just as our own ABRAMS LANDAU Senior litigation paralegal Kristin Tanzi does, the Alexandria law firm issued FOIA (flesh out) requests. After reviewing all the footage, plaintiff’s counsel was able to determine that the motor vehicle driver had a green turn arrow that turned to a solid green ball as the Defendant driver was waiting for the vehicles in front of her to turn.

The applicable motor vehicle insurance carriers ultimately accepted liability after reviewing the footage sent by plaintiff’s counsel. On November 24, 2025, the plaintiff settled the claim for $350,000, which represented all of the available insurance coverages. The available insurance coverage was comprised of the limits of the negligence Defendant driver’s coverage and the plaintiff biker’s underinsured motorist coverage from his personal auto policy, since he had greater policy limits than the car that crashed into him.

Doug Landau has taught at many Continuing Legal Education programs, such as this past Fall at the Richmond Convention Center. Here, lawyer Landau is shown presenting with The Travelers Insurance Company Senior Counsel for the Washington, D.C. region. One of the recurrent injustices is where an innocent victim has been harmed by a negligent driver, but there is not enough insurance to pay for all the medical bills, lost wages and permanent injuries

These cases illustrate a harsh reality where insurance coverage, not fault, nor injury severity, often determines the outcome. That is why we consistently advise our clients to carry meaningful UM/UIM coverage and Medical Payments (MedPay) coverage to protect themselves and everyone in their household.

If you, or someone you love, has been injured by an uninsured or underinsured driver, or been impacted by a “hit and run” incident, or if you have legal questions about an auto insurance policy, please contact us at Abrams Landau, Ltd.. We’re committed to helping injured Virginians understand their rights, and to making sure unsafe drivers and inadequate insurance don’t leave families without answers or options. Contact us today to get experienced legal help at frontdesk@landaulawshop.com or call/text us at (703) 796-9555.