Uninsured Motorist Property Damage: State Deductible Rules

By Plain Money Guide · Researched from official sources · Checked 2026-08-12 · Editorial standards

UMPD deductibles are set by state law, not by your insurer — and about 20 states don't sell it at all.

Uninsured motorist property damage (UMPD) pays to repair your car after an uninsured driver hits you — roughly 20 states sell it, most with a $200–$250 deductible set by statute. In the rest, your collision coverage is the only route, and you eat your full collision deductible. As of August 2026, the split between those two paths is worth $500 to $3,000 on a typical repair, and it depends almost entirely on which state issued your policy.

Table of Contents

• What UMPD covers, and what plain "uninsured motorist" does not
• State rules: deductibles, caps, and the identified-driver catch
• UMPD or collision: run the numbers before you pick a claim
• Where UMPD claims actually fall apart
• Michigan's mini-tort: the one route that isn't insurance
• FAQ
• Which coverage to claim under, by situation

What UMPD covers, and what plain "uninsured motorist" does not

The most common misreading on an auto policy: people see "uninsured motorist" on the declarations page and assume their car is covered. In most states that line is bodily injury only. It pays for your medical bills and lost wages when an uninsured driver injures you. It pays nothing toward the bumper.

Property damage is a separate coverage with a separate line item, and many states don't require insurers to offer it at all. Florida is the clearest example: Florida UM is bodily injury only, so a Florida driver with no collision coverage who is rear-ended by an uninsured driver has no first-party coverage for the car whatsoever. The Insurance Information Institute keeps a plain-language overview of how the two coverages divide.

State rules: deductibles, caps, and the identified-driver catch

Here is the part no insurer's website lays out, because each carrier only publishes the states it writes in. These deductibles are fixed by state statute — you cannot shop for a lower one, and switching carriers won't change it. Figures below reflect the statutory structure in force as of August 2026.

State	UMPD deductible	Cap on the payout	The catch
California	$250	$3,500	Sold only if you carry no collision; driver must be identified
Illinois	$250	$15,000	Driver must be identified; hit-and-run generally excluded
Washington	$100	Commonly capped at $25,000	Insurers must offer it; you can reject in writing
Texas	$250	Limit you purchase	Must be rejected in writing or it's on your policy
Georgia	$250	Limit you purchase	Deductible applies per accident, not per vehicle
Maryland	$250	Limit you purchase	Applies even when fault is undisputed
Virginia	$200	Limit you purchase	Built into UM coverage rather than sold separately
South Carolina	$200	Limit you purchase	Optional coverage; easy to decline by accident
North Carolina	$100	Limit you purchase	Deductible applies when the driver is unidentified
Florida	Not sold	—	UM is bodily injury only; collision is the only path

Two patterns matter more than the individual numbers. First, the states with a hard dollar cap (California at $3,500, Illinois at $15,000) are the states where UMPD is a partial fix, not a full one. Second, several states require the uninsured driver to be identified — a plate number, a name, an insurer confirmation of no coverage. A genuine hit-and-run where the car drove off unidentified falls outside UMPD in those states even though it is exactly the scenario people buy it for.

UMPD or collision: run the numbers before you pick a claim

Say the repair estimate on your sedan comes to $6,800, the other driver is at fault and confirmed uninsured, and you carry collision with a $1,000 deductible.

• Illinois: UMPD pays $6,800 minus the $250 statutory deductible = $6,550, comfortably under the $15,000 cap. Collision would pay $5,800. UMPD wins by $750.
• California: UMPD is capped at $3,500, minus $250 = $3,250. Collision pays $5,800. Collision wins by $2,550 — and California won't sell you UMPD in the first place if you carry collision, which is the state's way of pointing you at the better coverage.
• Same crash, driver never identified: in California or Illinois, UMPD pays $0. Collision pays $5,800. The identified-driver requirement, not the deductible, decides this one.

The general rule that falls out: UMPD beats collision when your state has no dollar cap (or a cap well above your car's value) and your collision deductible is $500 or higher. Collision beats UMPD on any repair above the cap, and on any claim where you can't produce the other driver.

One thing that does not split the decision: both are not-at-fault claims. Neither carries the surcharge an at-fault collision claim does. Choose on the math, not on which one "looks better" at renewal.

Where UMPD claims actually fall apart

People who did everything else right still get denied for these:

• No police report on a hit-and-run. States that allow UMPD for unidentified drivers almost always require a report filed within 24 hours. A report filed three days later, after the shop gave you the estimate, is the single most common denial.
• No physical contact. If a car swerved into your lane and you hit a guardrail avoiding it, several states treat that "phantom vehicle" claim as outside UMPD without independent corroboration. Collision has no such requirement.
• The driver turned out to be underinsured, not uninsured. UMPD normally responds when there is no coverage at all. When the at-fault driver has a $15,000 property damage limit and your repair is $22,000, you need underinsured motorist property damage — a coverage many states don't offer, leaving collision to cover the gap.
• You accepted the other driver's cash offer first. Taking payment and signing a release can extinguish your insurer's right to subrogate, and insurers deny on that basis.

Michigan's mini-tort: the one route that isn't insurance

Michigan handles this differently from every other state. Under Michigan's mini-tort provision, you can recover vehicle damage directly from the at-fault driver up to $3,000 — raised from $1,000 effective July 1, 2020 as part of the state's no-fault overhaul. That money covers damage your own policy didn't pay, which in practice usually means your collision deductible. You pursue it yourself, typically in small claims court, not through a claim adjuster. The Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services publishes the current consumer guidance.

Elsewhere, the equivalent move is your own insurer's subrogation. Pay your collision deductible, let the carrier chase the uninsured driver, and you get the deductible back only if they collect. Against a driver with no insurance and often no assets, plan on that money not coming back.

FAQ

Can I file under both UMPD and collision to cover the whole repair?

No. Both are first-party coverages for the same loss, and policies bar double recovery. You pick one. The only stacking that works is UMPD for the car plus uninsured motorist bodily injury for your medical bills — those are different losses.

Why can't I choose a $0 UMPD deductible?

Because it isn't your insurer's number. In states like Texas and Georgia the $250 is written into the insurance code, and every carrier writing in that state applies it identically. Your declarations page will show it; check your state's insurance department site — for example Texas Department of Insurance — for the current statutory figure.

I dropped collision on an older car. Does UMPD replace it?

Only partially, and only in states that sell it. In California the coverage tops out at $3,500, so on a car worth $7,000 you are self-insuring the other half. In an uncapped state like Georgia or Texas, UMPD does the job an uninsured driver's liability coverage would have — but only when that driver is identified.

Which coverage to claim under, by situation

If you're in an uncapped UMPD state (Texas, Georgia, Maryland, Virginia, South Carolina) and the driver is identified: file UMPD. Your deductible drops to $200–$250 from whatever your collision deductible is, and on the $6,800 example that is $750 more in hand than collision at a $1,000 deductible.

If you're in California: keep collision and skip UMPD. The $3,500 cap means UMPD only wins on repairs under roughly $4,250, and the state won't sell you both anyway. The trade-off is real: on a minor $1,500 fender repair, collision at a $1,000 deductible pays $500 while UMPD would have paid $1,250 — that's the narrow band where dropping collision costs you.

If the driver left and was never identified: go straight to collision, and file the police report the same day regardless. In California and Illinois the identified-driver requirement makes UMPD unavailable to you, so the report is what protects the collision claim, not the UMPD one.

If you're in Michigan: file collision, then pursue the mini-tort claim for up to $3,000 against the driver to recover your deductible. It's the only state where the recovery route is a court filing rather than a coverage election — and it's worth doing only if the driver has traceable assets or wages, since a judgment against someone with neither collects nothing.

This article is general information, not financial, legal, or medical advice. Rules and amounts change — verify with official sources or a licensed professional before acting.