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District of Columbia Auto Insurance & Crash Law Library

A public legal education and research library for District of Columbia motor-vehicle insurance, statutory benefits, crash claims, liability, damages, deadlines and settlement.

Guide 01 + 23 TOPIC GUIDES
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Layout updated September 29, 2026

Browse District of Columbia Guides Guide 01: How to Use This Library

District of Columbia Flag

District of Columbia Law Library

Numbered guides by legal category

The guide count and sequence are jurisdiction-specific. Categories follow subject matter rather than forcing the 22-topic state sequence.

Getting Started in District of Columbia

01District of Columbia Citizen’s Guide — How to Use This LibraryIdentify statutory and policy benefits, liability coverage, responsible parties, proof and deadlines before a final claim decision.›

02–18

Coverage & Insured Status

02Required Auto Insurance, 25/50/10 Liability, 25/50/5 UM & the October 1, 2027 D.C. Limit IncreaseRequired insurance, compulsory benefits or minimum-coverage questions.›03Finding Applicable Insurance Coverage After a District of Columbia CrashFinding every potentially applicable policy or statutory benefit.›04Who Is an Insured Under District of Columbia Auto Insurance?Insured status, permissive use and omnibus-coverage questions.›05D.C. Optional PIP, $50,000 Medical, $12,000 Work Loss & $4,000 Funeral BenefitsFirst-party, compulsory or accident-benefit questions.›06D.C. PIP Election, 60-Day Notice, Tort Restrictions & Injury ThresholdsFirst-party, compulsory or accident-benefit questions.›07D.C. Uninsured Motorist Coverage, 25/50/5 Minimums & Optional Higher LimitsUninsured/underinsured motorist coverage and related conditions.›08D.C. Optional Underinsured Motorist Coverage, Rejection, Offsets & Anti-StackingUninsured/underinsured motorist coverage and related conditions.›09D.C. Insurance Policy Interpretation, Exclusions & Coverage DisputesPolicy language, exclusions and coverage disputes.›10D.C. Pre-Litigation Insurance Disclosure, Required Documentation & 30-Day Policy-Limit ResponseRequired insurance, compulsory benefits or minimum-coverage questions.›18D.C. Government Vehicle Crashes, Six-Month §12-309 Notice & District LiabilityGovernment vehicle and public-entity claims.›

12–14

Insurer Duties & Claims Conduct

12D.C. Insurance Agents, Applications & Failure to Procure CoverageProducer duties and missing requested coverage.›13D.C. Duty to Defend, Reservations of Rights & Liability Coverage DefenseDefense and reservation-of-rights issues.›14D.C. Third-Party Failure to Settle & Excess ExposureSettlement opportunities and excess exposure.›

15–17

Vehicle & Use Questions

15D.C. Borrowed, Non-Owned & Rental VehiclesBorrowed, non-owned and rental vehicle issues.›16D.C. Work, Employer & Commercial Vehicle CoverageEmployer liability and commercial-auto coverage.›17D.C. Rideshare/Private Vehicle-for-Hire, 50/100/25 Logged-On & $1 Million Ride CoverageRideshare, taxi or for-hire vehicle coverage.›

19–20

Liability & Proof

19D.C. Contributory Negligence, Last Clear Chance & Vulnerable-User Comparative-Fault ExceptionFault-allocation rules.›20D.C. Crash Investigation, Evidence Preservation & Three-Year LimitationCrash investigation, evidence preservation and deadline issues.›

11–23

Damages & Resolution

11D.C. Claims Handling, Bad Faith & Unfair Claims Settlement PracticesClaims handling and insurer-conduct issues.›21D.C. Crash Damages, Property Claims, Loss of Use & Three-Year LimitationCrash investigation, evidence preservation and deadline issues.›22D.C. Wrongful Death, Survival & Two-Year Wrongful-Death LimitationCrash investigation, evidence preservation and deadline issues.›23D.C. Settlement, Releases, PIP, Liens, UM/UIM & SubrogationFirst-party, compulsory or accident-benefit questions.›

Case Authority

24D.C. Auto Insurance & Crash Law Case Authority LibraryJurisdiction-specific legal issue guide.›

Guide 01 · District of Columbia Citizen’s Guide

How to use this library before making a final claim decision

1Find every source of coverage or benefits

Start with the coverage-finding guide and identify compulsory, statutory and policy-based benefits separately.

2Build the liability map

Identify drivers, owners, employers, rental or for-hire operators, government entities and insurers that may have distinct statutory roles.

3Preserve proof and deadlines

Use the investigation/deadline guide and maintain a separate calendar for claims, notices and suit limitations.

4Verify before finality

Read the settlement/release guide, the case-authority library and official sources before release.

District of Columbia Published-Law Snapshot

Issues identified in the existing District of Columbia library

25 / 50 / 10

Through September 30, 2027, the current private-passenger minimum remains $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident bodily injury and $10,000 property damage.

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Current mandatory uninsured-motorist protection includes at least 25/50 bodily-injury and $5,000 property-damage coverage.

PIP offered

D.C. insurers must offer optional personal injury protection; elections can affect tort rights and claim procedure.

50 / 100 / 20

D.C. Law 26-155 applies beginning October 1, 2027, increasing private-passenger minimums and changing underinsured-motorist coverage.

D.C. Law Library

Official District of Columbia Code and enacted laws.

D.C. Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking

Motor-vehicle insurance regulation and consumer guidance.

Currentness status: carried forward from the existing hub; layout normalization is not legal-currentness certification.

Primary Research

Official District of Columbia research sources

How this library stays current

Build the complete District of Columbia coverage and claim map

1. Identify the issue and open the relevant jurisdiction guide.

2. Verify current statutes, regulations, program rules, policy language and controlling authority.

3. Keep legal currentness, source integrity and publication checks separate from layout normalization.

Build the complete District of Columbia claim map before closing the file.

Identify compulsory and policy coverage, responsible parties, proof, deadlines, reimbursement interests and release consequences.