Updated June 2026
What Is Uninsured Motorist Coverage Insurance?
Uninsured Motorist Coverage has two parts: bodily injury (UM) pays your medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering when an uninsured driver hits you; property damage (UMPD) covers your vehicle repair costs. It also applies if the at-fault driver flees the scene and can't be identified. Unlike liability coverage, which pays the other driver when you cause an accident, UM protects you when the other driver is at fault but has no insurance to pay your claim.
- You're stopped at a red light when a driver rear-ends you. The driver has no insurance. Your medical bills total $4,200, and your vehicle needs $3,800 in repairs. If you carry $25,000 UM bodily injury and $25,000 UMPD, your policy pays both costs minus your deductible. Without UM, you'd need to sue the at-fault driver personally and collect nothing if they have no assets.
- A driver sideswipes your car on the highway and speeds off. You have a dashcam but didn't catch the plate clearly enough to identify the driver. Your vehicle damage totals $5,100, and you have whiplash requiring $1,800 in treatment. Your UM policy covers both if your state allows unidentified hit-and-run claims under UM. Arkansas requires reporting the hit-and-run to police within 72 hours to qualify for UM coverage—miss that window and your claim is denied.
- A driver with Arkansas minimum liability ($25,000 bodily injury per person) runs a red light and T-bones your car. Your medical bills reach $48,000. The at-fault driver's liability policy pays its $25,000 limit, leaving you $23,000 short. If you carry Underinsured Motorist Coverage (a related add-on sold alongside UM), it pays the gap up to your UM limit. Without it, you absorb the $23,000 or pursue the driver personally.
Who Needs Uninsured Motorist Coverage Insurance?
You need UM if you're reinstating after suspension and can't afford to absorb a hit-and-run or uninsured driver claim out of pocket. One in seven Arkansas drivers is uninsured, meaning your odds of getting hit by someone with no coverage are higher than in most states. UM also protects non-owner SR-22 policyholders—if you don't own a vehicle but need SR-22 filing to satisfy reinstatement, UM on a non-owner policy ensures you're covered if an uninsured driver hits you while you're driving a borrowed or rental car.
Ask yourself: if an uninsured driver totals my car and injures me today, can I cover $10,000–$30,000 in combined medical and repair costs without financial collapse? If no, carry UM at limits matching your assets and recovery needs. If you're rebuilding after suspension, UM prevents one bad accident from derailing reinstatement progress—the $10/month cost is smaller than the risk.
How Much Does Uninsured Motorist Coverage Insurance Cost?
Uninsured Motorist Coverage typically adds $8–$18 per month ($96–$216 annually) to an Arkansas policy, varying by coverage limits and ZIP code.
- Coverage limits you select—$25,000/$50,000 bodily injury costs less than $100,000/$300,000, but higher limits protect you better given Arkansas's 14.2% uninsured rate.
- Whether you add UMPD (property damage)—many carriers bundle UM bodily injury with UMPD, others sell them separately; UMPD adds $3–$7/month.
- Your county's uninsured driver rate—Pulaski and Sebastian counties have higher uninsured rates than Benton County, which increases UM premiums in those areas.
- Whether you stack UM limits across multiple vehicles on one policy—stacking is allowed in Arkansas and doubles or triples your available UM coverage but costs 40–60% more than non-stacked UM.
- Your insurer's claims experience with UM in Arkansas—carriers that pay frequent UM claims in your region charge more; shop multiple carriers to find the lowest rate for identical limits.