What are the at-fault driver's bodily injury coverage limits?

What Bodily Injury Coverage Limits Mean

Bodily injury liability coverage is the part of an automobile policy that may pay covered claims for injuries caused by an insured driver. Its limits are usually expressed as a limit for one injured person and a separate total limit for everyone injured in the same collision.

The per-person limit is the most the insurer may pay for one person’s covered bodily injury claim under that policy. The per-accident limit is the total available under that policy for all bodily injury claims arising from the collision. If several people were injured, they may be competing for the same per-accident limit.

A policy limit is not an admission of fault, a settlement offer, or a measure of the injured person’s damages. Payment still depends on liability, causation, documentation, policy terms, and other claim issues.

Why the Limits Cannot Be Assumed

North Carolina requires motor vehicle liability policies to carry minimum coverage, but a driver or vehicle owner may purchase higher limits. The applicable minimum also depends on timing because the statutory requirements changed effective July 1, 2025. The policy’s effective dates, renewal history, and the collision date therefore matter.

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-279.21 defines required motor vehicle liability coverage and addresses uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. In practical terms, the declarations page and applicable endorsements—not the statutory minimum by itself—show the limits actually purchased.

Other facts may also affect the total insurance available:

• The driver may be covered under the vehicle owner’s policy.
• A separate policy may cover the driver as a permissive user or through another insured vehicle.
• An employer’s commercial policy may apply if the driver was working.
• A rideshare or delivery platform may provide coverage depending on the driver’s activity at the time.
• An excess or umbrella policy may provide additional liability coverage.
• Several injured people may be making claims against one per-accident limit.

For these reasons, an adjuster’s informal statement that the claim involves “minimum limits” should not be treated as final written confirmation of all available coverage.

How to Request the Liability Limits in North Carolina

A claimant may first ask the liability adjuster to identify the bodily injury limits voluntarily. The request should seek written confirmation of the per-person and per-accident limits, the policy period, the identity of the named insured, and whether the insurer knows of any additional or excess coverage.

If the insurer does not disclose the information voluntarily, North Carolina law provides a formal pre-suit procedure under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 58-3-33. A qualifying written request generally includes:

• A written request for the applicable policy limits.
• An authorization allowing access to medical records related to the collision injuries and records from the required period before the collision.
• A written agreement to participate in prelitigation mediation if the insurer elects to initiate it.

When the statutory requirements are met, the insurer generally must provide the limits in writing within 30 days. The medical authorization should be reviewed carefully because it permits access to private health information. The mediation consent also carries practical consequences, including potential responsibility for part of the mediation costs.

A bodily injury demand package may contain medical records, bills, and a settlement proposal without satisfying each requirement of this separate disclosure process. Keep proof of delivery, copies of every enclosure, and the date the insurer received the request.

Why the Limits Matter to a Possible UIM Claim

Underinsured motorist coverage, commonly called UIM coverage, may become important when the liability coverage does not fully address an injured person’s legally recoverable damages. Whether UIM coverage applies depends on the law governing the policy, the liability coverage, the claimant’s damages, and the terms and limits of every potentially applicable UIM policy.

Important steps include obtaining the claimant’s own automobile declarations pages and policy documents, checking policies covering resident household relatives when appropriate, and identifying the policy covering the vehicle occupied during the collision. Separate policies may require separate notices.

North Carolina law contains procedures for exhausting or receiving a tender of liability limits and protecting a UIM insurer’s rights. Before signing a release, covenant, or other settlement document with the liability insurer, a claimant should determine whether notice must be given to a UIM carrier. Resolving the liability claim without addressing those requirements may create avoidable coverage disputes.

How This Applies

Here, a bodily injury demand has been submitted, but the liability limits remain unknown. The next practical step is to review what was sent and determine whether it was only a settlement demand or also a complete statutory request for policy-limit disclosure.

The claimant should also request written confirmation of all primary and excess policies and gather the claimant’s own insurance documents. That information allows a comparison of the liability coverage with any potentially applicable uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage. Because the date of the collision and policy dates were not provided, no particular statutory minimum or version of the UIM rules should be assumed.

Information to Preserve and Gather

• The crash report and insurance information exchanged after the collision.
• The liability insurer’s claim number and adjuster contact information.
• The demand letter, all attachments, and proof of delivery.
• Any written response concerning coverage, limits, or a reservation of rights.
• The claimant’s automobile declarations pages, full policy, and endorsements.
• Policies for the occupied vehicle and potentially applicable household vehicles.
• Medical records, itemized bills, visit summaries, and accurate symptom documentation.
• Information about other injured people or other claims arising from the crash.
• Facts showing whether the driver was working, making deliveries, or using a rideshare platform.

Fault and Filing Deadlines Still Matter

Insurance limits do not establish that the other driver is legally responsible. North Carolina allows contributory negligence as a defense. If the defense proves that the injured person’s own negligence helped cause the collision, it can create serious problems for the injury claim. Evidence should therefore document both the other driver’s conduct and why the claimant acted reasonably.

Many North Carolina personal injury actions are governed by the three-year period described in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1-52, although different rules can apply in some situations. Sending a demand, requesting limits, or continuing negotiations with an adjuster does not automatically extend the deadline to file a lawsuit.