Accidents
You just got rear-ended on the Beltway. The other driver has Virginia plates. When you exchange information, they tell you they don't have insurance.
If that sounds like a nightmare scenario, it is. And if you drive in Maryland — especially anywhere near the DC metro area — it's a scenario that plays out far more often than most people realize. As a Maryland personal injury attorney, I've handled cases exactly like this, and the coverage gaps that follow can be devastating for families who aren't prepared.
This article explains why Virginia-tagged vehicles without insurance remain a serious risk for Maryland drivers, what your legal options are if you're hit by one, and the single most important thing you can do right now to protect yourself before an accident ever happens.
For 66 years — from 1958 until July 2024 — Virginia was one of only two states in the country that allowed drivers to legally operate a vehicle with absolutely no insurance. Under Virginia Code § 46.2-706, any vehicle owner could pay a $500 annual "Uninsured Motor Vehicle fee" to the DMV and drive legally without a single dollar of coverage.
The fee started at just $15 back in 1958 and gradually increased over the decades. But regardless of the amount, the Virginia DMV was clear about what the fee actually provided: nothing. It was not insurance. It did not cover injuries to the driver, injuries to anyone they hit, or property damage of any kind. It simply purchased the legal right to drive uninsured.
If a Virginia driver who paid the UMV fee caused an accident, they were personally liable for every dollar of damage — with no insurance company behind them. For the person they injured, that meant there was no policy to file a claim against. No adjuster to call. No coverage to access. Just an individual who, in most cases, didn't have the personal assets to cover a serious injury claim.
In 2023, Virginia passed Senate Bill 951 with overwhelming bipartisan support — 82 to 16 in the House and 36 to 3 in the Senate. Governor Glenn Youngkin signed it into law, and as of July 1, 2024, every Virginia driver is now required to carry auto insurance. Virginia also raised its minimum coverage requirements effective January 1, 2025, from 30/60/20 to 50/100/25.
That's good news. But here's what it doesn't fix.
The Insurance Research Council's most recent data estimates that approximately 12.9% of Virginia drivers remain uninsured — roughly 800,000 people. The UMV fee repeal eliminated the legal option to drive without insurance, but it didn't eliminate the reality that hundreds of thousands of Virginia drivers are still on the road with no coverage at all. They've simply transitioned from "legally uninsured" to "illegally uninsured."
The Virginia DMV's own data confirms the scope of noncompliance. In fiscal year 2024, the DMV issued over 124,000 orders of suspension for insurance verification violations and sent more than 353,000 notices to suspected uninsured vehicle owners. Rising auto insurance premiums — up roughly 26% year over year — make the affordability problem worse. For many lower-income Virginia drivers, the choice isn't between buying insurance or paying the old $500 fee. It's between buying insurance and paying rent.
And those drivers don't stay in Virginia. They commute to work, run errands, and drive through Maryland every single day.
The numbers paint a stark picture of exposure for Maryland drivers.
The Woodrow Wilson Bridge on I-95/I-495 carries approximately 250,000 vehicles per day between Virginia and Maryland. The American Legion Bridge on I-495 handles another 216,000 to 235,000 daily crossings. Combined, just these two Beltway bridges see roughly 450,000 to 500,000 vehicle crossings between the two states every day.
At Virginia's 12.9% uninsured rate, a conservative estimate suggests more than 60,000 daily crossings into Maryland by vehicles that carry no insurance whatsoever. That's not a theoretical risk. That's tens of thousands of uninsured vehicles sharing Maryland roads with you and your family right now.
And the problem isn't limited to Northern Virginia commuters. The I-95 corridor between Woodbridge and the Maryland border carries 175,000 to 285,000 vehicles per day depending on the segment. Virginia drivers travel into Maryland for work, shopping, medical appointments, and family visits — particularly in Prince George's County, Montgomery County, and the Baltimore metropolitan area.
When an uninsured Virginia driver causes an accident in Maryland, the injured person faces a cascading set of problems that most people don't fully understand until they're living through it.
There's No Insurance Company to File a Claim Against
This is the most immediate and obvious problem. In a typical car accident, you file a claim against the at-fault driver's liability insurance. When the at-fault driver has no insurance, that avenue simply doesn't exist. There's no policy number, no claims adjuster, and no carrier to negotiate with.
Suing the Driver Personally Is Usually Futile
You have the legal right to file a personal injury lawsuit against the uninsured driver. But in my experience, this rarely produces meaningful results. The reality is straightforward: people who can't afford car insurance usually can't afford to pay a judgment. Even if you win in court, collecting on that judgment through wage garnishment or asset seizure often yields little to nothing — and the legal costs of pursuing collection may exceed what you recover.
MAIF Won't Help Most Insured Drivers
Many Maryland drivers assume that the Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund — specifically its Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund — exists as a safety net for anyone hit by an uninsured driver. It doesn't work that way.
Under Maryland Insurance Article § 19-509(e)(2), your own uninsured motorist coverage is primary. That means if you have UM coverage on your auto policy — and virtually every insured Maryland driver does, because Maryland law requires it — you are effectively disqualified from filing a UCJ claim with MAIF. The UCJ Fund is available primarily for pedestrians without vehicle policies, passengers in uninsured vehicles from other households, and other narrow circumstances.
Even when a UCJ claim is available, recovery is capped at $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident, and there's a strict 180-day filing deadline from the date of the accident. Miss that window, and the option disappears entirely.
Your Own UM/UIM Coverage Becomes Everything
This is the critical takeaway. When you're hit by an uninsured Virginia driver on a Maryland road, your own uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage is almost certainly the only meaningful source of recovery for your injuries. Whatever limits you carry on your own policy — that's your ceiling. Not more.
A Maryland driver carrying only the state minimum of $30,000 in UM coverage who suffers $200,000 in injuries from an uninsured Virginia motorist faces a $170,000 gap with no realistic path to recovery. I've sat across the desk from clients in exactly this situation, and it is one of the most difficult conversations in my practice.
As if the coverage gap weren't punishing enough, Maryland's contributory negligence doctrine adds another layer of risk that many accident victims don't see coming.
Maryland is one of only four states — plus the District of Columbia — that follows pure contributory negligence. Under this rule, if you are found even 1% at fault for the accident, you are completely barred from recovering any damages. Not reduced damages. Zero. Nothing.
This rule applies not only to lawsuits against the at-fault driver but also to UM/UIM claims filed under your own insurance policy. Your own insurer can — and routinely does — raise contributory negligence as a defense to deny or reduce your UM claim.
I've written extensively about how contributory negligence works in Maryland injury cases, and the principle applies with full force in uninsured motorist situations. Insurance adjusters will look for any evidence — a recorded statement, a police report notation, even a passing comment — suggesting you could have done something differently. Were you glancing at your phone? Did you fail to honk? Were you driving two miles over the speed limit? In a contributory negligence state, any of these can be used to argue that your claim should be worth zero.
This is why I tell every client: never give a recorded statement to any insurance company — including your own — before speaking with an attorney. The stakes are too high, and the legal landscape in Maryland is too unforgiving.
Despite the challenges, there are legal avenues available. Understanding them — and acting quickly — can make the difference between adequate compensation and no recovery at all.
File a UM/UIM Claim Under Your Own Policy
This is your primary remedy and, in most cases, your best path to meaningful compensation. Your UM/UIM claim is filed with your own auto insurance carrier. The amount you can recover depends entirely on the limits you selected when you purchased your policy.
If you elected Enhanced Underinsured Motorist Coverage — a specific coverage option that Maryland insurers have been required to offer since July 1, 2024 — your recovery potential may be even better. With standard UIM coverage, the at-fault driver's liability limits reduce what's available under your own policy. With Enhanced UIM, that offset is eliminated. When the at-fault driver is completely uninsured, your full EUIM limits are available without any reduction.
One important procedural note: under Maryland Insurance Article § 19-511(e), you must obtain your own insurer's consent before accepting any settlement from the at-fault driver or their representative. Accepting a settlement without that consent can jeopardize your UM/UIM claim.
Access Your PIP Benefits
If you did not waive Personal Injury Protection when you purchased your policy, PIP provides immediate, no-fault coverage regardless of who caused the accident. PIP pays for medical expenses, 85% of lost wages, funeral costs, and essential services. The minimum PIP coverage in Maryland is $2,500, though some policies carry $5,000 or $10,000.
What makes PIP especially valuable in uninsured driver cases is that benefits are not subject to subrogation — your insurer cannot recoup PIP payments from any settlement you later receive — and PIP allows double recovery. You collect PIP benefits on top of any other compensation. Using PIP also cannot increase your premiums.
File a Personal Injury Lawsuit
You retain the right to sue the at-fault driver directly. As I discussed above, the practical value of this option depends entirely on whether the driver has assets worth pursuing. In some cases — particularly where the uninsured driver was operating a vehicle owned by someone else, or was driving in the course of employment — there may be additional parties with deeper pockets who share liability.
File a MAIF UCJ Claim (If Eligible)
If you do not have your own UM coverage (rare for insured Maryland drivers), you may be able to file a claim with MAIF's Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund. The 180-day filing deadline is strict and non-negotiable. Recovery is capped at $30,000/$60,000.
If you're involved in an accident and the other vehicle has Virginia plates, take these steps immediately:
Call 911 and insist on a police report, regardless of how minor the accident seems. Document the other vehicle thoroughly — photograph the license plate, the vehicle from multiple angles, any company logos or fleet markings, and any visible damage. Exchange information, but do not discuss fault. Note specifically that the vehicle is registered in Virginia, as this is directly relevant to the insurance investigation that follows.
Seek medical attention the same day, even if you feel fine. Some of the most serious injuries — including traumatic brain injuries and spinal disc herniations — may not produce immediate symptoms. Gaps in medical treatment are aggressively used by insurance companies to challenge whether your injuries were actually caused by the accident.
Do not provide a recorded statement to any insurance company before consulting with an attorney. This includes your own insurer. Remember: in a UM/UIM claim, your own insurance company is not on your side. They are the party that will be paying the claim, and their financial interest is to minimize that payment.
Contact a personal injury attorney as soon as possible. I offer free consultations for exactly these situations, because the decisions you make in the first 72 hours can shape the entire trajectory of your case.
If you take one thing from this article, let it be this: check your UM/UIM coverage limits today. Not after an accident. Today.
If you're carrying the Maryland minimum of $30,000 per person, you are dangerously underinsured — especially if you drive anywhere near the Virginia border, commute through the DC metro area, or regularly travel the I-95 corridor. I recommend carrying UM/UIM coverage of at least $100,000/$300,000. The cost difference is often surprisingly small — in many cases, only a few dollars per month — and the protection it provides is enormous.
Ask your insurer about Enhanced Underinsured Motorist Coverage specifically. EUIM stacks your coverage on top of whatever the at-fault driver has — or doesn't have. In an uninsured driver scenario, it means your full policy limits are available without any reduction. Since July 2024, your insurer is required to offer it. If you haven't been presented with the option, ask for it.
Do not waive PIP. For a few dollars per month, PIP provides immediate medical coverage and wage replacement regardless of fault. In an uninsured driver accident, PIP may be the only coverage paying your medical bills while your UM claim is being processed.
I've written a comprehensive guide to commonly missed insurance coverages in Maryland that walks through each of these coverages in detail. I'd encourage every Maryland driver to read it and review their current policy.
UM/UIM claims are not the same as filing a claim against the other driver's insurance. When you file a UM claim, you are making a claim against your own insurer — the company you've been paying premiums to. And despite the relationship, your insurer's goal is to pay as little as possible.
In my experience, insurance companies in UM cases are more likely to raise contributory negligence defenses, dispute the severity of injuries, and challenge medical causation than they are in standard liability claims. They know that many policyholders don't fully understand their coverage, and they know that unrepresented claimants are more likely to accept lowball offers.
An experienced personal injury attorney can identify all available sources of coverage, navigate the procedural requirements that can derail a claim, protect you from the contributory negligence traps that insurers set, and negotiate or litigate your claim to its full value.
If you've been injured in a Maryland accident caused by a driver with Virginia tags — or any uninsured driver — I'm here to help. Contact me directly to discuss your case. Every accident is different, and a conversation costs you nothing.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Laws and regulations are subject to change, and individual circumstances vary. For advice specific to your situation, please consult with a qualified attorney.
Joshua C. Sussex, Esq.
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