Massachusetts Uninsured Motorist Law (MGL ch. 175, § 113L)

Massachusetts uninsured motorist law (MGL ch. 175, Section 113L) requires auto policies to cover you if you're injured by an uninsured driver. Underinsured motorist coverage, which pays when the at-fault driver's limits are insufficient, is separate and must be purchased at the same level as your bodily injury limits unless you reject it in writing.

If you were hurt by an uninsured driver or a hit and run in Massachusetts, you may assume your own insurer will handle your claim fairly. In reality, your insurer becomes the opposing party in a UM or UIM dispute. The same company that took your premiums now has a financial interest in paying you as little as possible, and its adjusters use the same delay and reduction tactics as any other insurer.

The challenge is that UM and UIM claims in Massachusetts carry strict notice deadlines, procedural requirements, and arbitration rules that most injured people have never encountered. Missing a notice deadline or giving a recorded statement to your own insurer without legal representation can reduce or eliminate a valid claim. The insurer knows these rules. Most claimants do not.

In this article, you will discover how Massachusetts uninsured and underinsured motorist law works, what coverage pays for, how anti-stacking rules and arbitration affect your claim, and how a Massachusetts personal injury attorney can help you recover full compensation from your own insurer.

What Is Massachusetts Uninsured Motorist Law?

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 175, Section 113L requires every auto insurance policy issued in the state to include uninsured motorist (UM) coverage. This is a built-in protection on your own policy that pays for your bodily injuries when the driver who caused the crash has no insurance, flees the scene, or has an insurance company that goes bankrupt.

The state requires all auto insurance policies to include minimum uninsured motorist coverage. Purchasing higher limits is one of the most important financial decisions you can make, because a single serious crash can produce hospital bills that far exceed those minimums.

What Does Uninsured Motorist Coverage Pay For?

Uninsured motorist coverage is bodily injury coverage only. It does not pay for damage to your vehicle. Your Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage pays your medical bills first, up to its limit, before your UM coverage applies.

Once PIP is exhausted, your UM coverage can compensate you for:

• Medical expenses: Hospital bills, surgery, physical therapy, and future care costs not covered by health insurance.
• Lost wages: Income you cannot earn while you heal, including reduced earning capacity if your injuries are permanent.
• Pain and suffering: Compensation for physical pain and emotional distress caused by the crash.
• Permanent injury and scarring: Damages for lasting harm such as disfigurement or disability.
• Wrongful death: Compensation available to the family of someone killed by an uninsured driver.

Pedestrians and cyclists hit by an uninsured driver can also recover under a household UM policy.

Is Underinsured Motorist Coverage Required in Massachusetts?

Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage is optional under Section 113L, but it is one of the most valuable protections you can add to your policy. UIM pays when the driver who caused the crash has insurance but not enough to cover your full losses.

The coverage works on an offset system. If the at-fault driver carries $20,000 in coverage and you carry $100,000, you can pursue up to $80,000 in additional compensation through your own UIM policy after the at-fault driver's limits are exhausted. Section 113L also protects your UIM recovery from being reduced by certain statutory damage caps, which we explain further below.

How Do Massachusetts Anti-Stacking Rules Work?

Stacking means combining coverage limits from multiple vehicles or multiple household policies to increase the total money available after one crash. Massachusetts law prohibits this.

If you have two vehicles on the same policy and each carries $100,000 in UM coverage, your maximum recovery remains $100,000. Purchasing higher limits on a single policy is the only reliable way to increase your family's financial protection.

Which Policy Pays First After a Crash?

Section 113L sets clear priority rules to determine which policy applies when more than one might cover an injured person. The rules depend on your relationship to the policy and which vehicle you were in at the time of the crash.

Your Situation	Which Policy Pays First
Named insured hurt in a vehicle you don't own	Your own policy with the highest UM or UIM limits
Named insured hurt in your own vehicle	Only the policy covering that specific vehicle
Injured passenger with no policy of your own	Policy on the vehicle you were riding in
Resident relative with no policy of your own	Household member's policy with the highest limits

One rule surprises many people: if you are hurt in your own insured vehicle, you can only recover from the policy covering that specific car, even if you own other policies with higher limits.

A resident relative is a person related to you by blood, marriage, or adoption who lives in your household, including stepchildren and foster children. If two resident relative policies have equal limits, the insurance companies split the payment proportionally.

Does Coverage Apply in Hit-and-Run Accidents?

Yes. UM coverage applies to hit-and-run crashes, and physical contact between vehicles is not always required under Massachusetts law. However, the less physical evidence there is, the more important other proof becomes.

Strong evidence for a hit-and-run claim includes:

• A police report filed immediately after the crash
• Contact information for any witnesses
• Photos of the scene, skid marks, and vehicle damage
• Surveillance footage from nearby businesses or traffic cameras

Delaying your report to the police or your insurer gives the carrier grounds to deny your claim. Prompt action protects your right to compensation.

What Deadlines and Notice Rules Apply to UM and UIM Claims?

UM and UIM claims are contract claims against your own insurance company, which means they operate under different rules than a standard injury lawsuit. Missing a single deadline can permanently end your right to collect.

• Prompt notice to your insurer: Your policy requires you to report the crash quickly, often within days.
• Hit-and-run reporting: Most policies require police notification within 24 hours and insurer notice shortly after.
• Lawsuit deadline: You generally have three years from the crash date to file a lawsuit in Massachusetts.
• Arbitration demand deadline: Many policies set their own cutoff for demanding arbitration, which is separate from the general lawsuit deadline.
• Consent to settle: You must obtain your insurer's written consent before accepting any settlement from the at-fault driver, or you risk losing your UIM rights entirely.

We track every deadline for you so nothing falls through the cracks.

One pattern we see in Massachusetts UM and UIM cases is that the prompt notice requirement in the policy is treated by insurers as a forfeiture trigger rather than an administrative step. When a client delayed reporting a hit and run to their insurer because they were focused on medical care, the insurer argues prejudice from the delayed notice and uses that argument to reduce or deny the claim.

Massachusetts courts have limited how broadly insurers can apply that argument, but the dispute itself adds months to the resolution. We review the specific policy notice language on the first call so our clients understand exactly what they need to do and when.

What Happens If the At-Fault Driver's Insurer Is Insolvent?

If the driver who caused your crash had insurance but their company goes bankrupt, your UM coverage can step in. The insolvency must be declared as of the accident date or within one year afterward.

Save every piece of correspondence from the failed insurer or the Massachusetts Insurers Insolvency Fund. We use that documentation to build your claim and protect your right to compensation.

How Does 113L Protect You When the At-Fault Driver Is a Municipality?

When a city or state vehicle causes a crash, the Massachusetts Tort Claims Act caps your direct recovery against the government at $100,000. For a serious injury involving surgery, hospitalization, or long-term disability, that amount often falls far short of your actual losses.

Section 113L directly addresses this problem. Your UIM recovery is not reduced by the municipal cap, which means your own policy can fill the gap between the $100,000 government limit and the true value of your medical bills and lost income. You still must follow strict presentment notice rules to preserve your direct claim against the municipality, and we handle that process for you.

How Does Your Own Insurer Become Your Adversary?

Once you file a UM or UIM claim, your own insurance company steps into the shoes of the at-fault driver and works to minimize what it pays you. The same company that collected your premiums will now dispute liability, challenge your medical treatment, and push a fast settlement before you understand the full cost of your injuries.

Adjusters will call repeatedly asking for recorded statements. They will send broad medical release forms designed to let them search years of your medical history for anything they can use against you. We handle every communication with the insurer so you are not pressured into saying something that reduces your recovery.

What Tactics do Insurers Use to Limit UM and UIM Claims?

Knowing these tactics in advance helps you recognize them when they happen:

• Disputing fault: Arguing you share responsibility for the crash to reduce their payout.
• Blaming prior conditions: Claiming your injuries existed before the crash.
• Challenging your medical care: Calling your doctor visits unnecessary or excessive.
• Quick lowball offers: Pushing a fast settlement before your full medical picture is clear.
• Surveillance: Monitoring your social media for anything that contradicts your reported limitations.

When an insurer crosses the line into unfair claim handling, Massachusetts consumer protection laws under Chapter 93A and Chapter 176D allow us to pursue additional damages. That legal exposure gives us real leverage at the negotiating table.

What we see consistently in Massachusetts UM and UIM cases is that the insurer's independent medical examination is the primary tool used to cap the injury valuation after liability has been established. Physicians selected by Massachusetts-based UM carriers are asked to evaluate whether treatment was necessary and causally related to the crash, and their reports almost universally minimize the injury and recommend an end to active treatment.

We prepare clients for the IME process, document their treating physician's current findings immediately before the exam, and respond to the IME report with a peer review from an independent specialist who addresses each disputed point in the insurer's report.

How Does Arbitration Work in UM and UIM Disputes?

Most Massachusetts auto policies require binding arbitration to resolve UM and UIM disputes instead of a jury trial. Arbitration is a hearing before a neutral decision-maker who reviews evidence from both sides and issues a final, binding award.

Arbitration is generally faster than court, but the deadlines for demanding it are easy to miss without a lawyer tracking your policy terms. Breakstone, White & Gluck prepares every UM and UIM case as if it will go before a jury. That level of preparation produces stronger arbitration outcomes and better settlement offers.

In our experience handling UM and UIM arbitrations in Massachusetts, the most significant mistake claimants make is entering arbitration without the same level of expert witness preparation they would bring to a jury trial. Arbitrators hear UM and UIM disputes regularly and are familiar with the arguments insurers make, but they evaluate credibility and evidence quality with the same rigor as a judge.

Cases where the claimant has a treating physician's narrative report, an independent life care plan, and a biomechanical analysis of the crash mechanism consistently produce higher arbitration awards than cases where the claimant relies on medical records alone.

What To Do After a Crash with an Uninsured or Underinsured Driver?

Taking the right steps immediately after the crash protects both your health and your legal rights.

• Call 911 and get a police report. The report locks in the date, location, and driver information, and it is often the most critical piece of evidence in a hit-and-run case.
• See a doctor the same day. Adrenaline can mask serious injuries like concussions and internal bleeding. Same-day records create a direct link between the crash and your injuries.
• Notify your insurer without giving a recorded statement. Report the crash to satisfy your policy requirements, but do not give a recorded statement until you have spoken with a lawyer.
• Preserve evidence and witness information. Photograph the scene, collect witness contact details, and look for nearby surveillance cameras.
• Do not sign broad medical releases. These give the insurer access to years of private medical history they can use to dispute your claim.

Contact Breakstone, White & Gluck as early as possible. We handle the insurer, track every deadline, and build the evidence of your losses while you focus on your medical care.

Speak with a Massachusetts Uninsured Motorist Lawyer Today

Breakstone, White & Gluck has spent more than 30 years fighting insurance companies on behalf of seriously injured people across Massachusetts. Our founding partners personally handle every case, and we prepare each one as if it will go to trial.

We work on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you. Contact us today for a free consultation. Policy notice rules and arbitration deadlines can expire quickly, and the sooner we get involved, the better your position.

Massachusetts Uninsured Motorist Law FAQs

Is Uninsured Motorist Coverage Mandatory in Massachusetts?

Yes. Every auto policy issued in Massachusetts must include uninsured motorist coverage with minimum limits of $20,000 per person and $40,000 per accident.

Does Uninsured Motorist Coverage Pay for Vehicle Damage?

No. Uninsured motorist coverage pays for bodily injury only. You need separate collision coverage to pay for repairs to your vehicle.

Can You Stack UM or UIM Limits Across Multiple Policies in Massachusetts?

No. Massachusetts law prohibits combining coverage limits from multiple vehicles or policies for a single accident. Purchasing higher limits on one policy is the only way to increase your protection.

Do You Need Your Insurer's Written Consent Before Settling a UIM Claim?

Yes. Settling with the at-fault driver without your insurer's written consent can permanently forfeit your right to collect underinsured motorist benefits.

Does a Hit-and-Run UM Claim in Massachusetts Require Physical Contact?

Physical contact is not strictly required, but you need strong corroborating evidence such as a police report, witness statements, or surveillance footage to support your claim.

Does the Massachusetts Tort Claims Act Cap Limit UIM Recovery Against a Municipality?

No. Section 113L protects your UIM recovery from the $100,000 municipal damages cap, allowing your own policy to cover the gap between that limit and your actual losses.

Can You Collect UM Benefits If You Were Driving Your Own Uninsured Vehicle?

No. Section 113L bars UM recovery when you are hurt while operating your own vehicle that does not carry the insurance coverage required by Massachusetts law.