A hit-and-run in Alabama with no charges yet: what you can still do

Attorney Answer

Two things run separately here. On the criminal side, Alabama lets a person make a sworn complaint to a judge or magistrate, who then decides whether a warrant should issue. On your own losses, you do not have to wait for any charge: if the other driver is never identified, your own uninsured-motorist coverage can pay, unless you rejected that coverage, and Alabama does not let a policy insist on physical contact with the hit-and-run vehicle.

The other driver had a duty to stop. Ala. Code § 32-10-1(a):

(a) The driver of any motor vehicle involved in an accident resulting in injury to or the death of any person, or in damage to any vehicle driven or attended by any person, shall immediately stop the vehicle at the accident scene or as close thereto and shall return to or remain at or as close to the scene of the accident until he or she has fulfilled the requirements of Section 32-10-2.

A complaint to a judge or magistrate. Ala. Code § 15-7-1:

A “complaint” is an allegation made before a proper judge or magistrate that a person has been guilty of a designated public offense.

Under Ala. Code § 15-7-2(a), the judge or magistrate examines the person complaining on oath. And Ala. Code § 15-7-3 leaves the warrant to the judge or magistrate:

If the judge or magistrate is reasonably satisfied from such deposition that the offense complained of has been committed and that there is reasonable ground to believe that the defendant is guilty thereof, he must issue a warrant of arrest.

So the decision is not yours, and with a driver no one has identified, there may be no one to name. A warrant can issue with the name stated as unknown under Ala. Code § 15-7-4(b), but that is a practical question to raise with the police or a lawyer first.

Your own uninsured-motorist coverage. Alabama requires an auto liability policy on a vehicle registered or principally garaged in the state to include uninsured-motorist coverage, but under Ala. Code § 32-7-23(a) “the named insured shall have the right to reject such coverage”. The Supreme Court of Alabama has held that the coverage reaches a hit-and-run driver, and that a policy's requirement of physical contact with the hit-and-run vehicle is void: State Farm Fire & Casualty Co. v. Lambert, 291 Ala. 645, 285 So. 2d 917 (1973). It has also voided a policy term demanding corroboration beyond the claimant's own testimony for a phantom-vehicle claim: Walker v. GuideOne Specialty Mutual Insurance Co., 834 So. 2d 769 (Ala. 2002). You still have to prove that the other vehicle caused the crash.

If the driver is found later, the claim runs against that driver and their insurer, and the police report you made is part of the record.

Alabama's contributory-negligence rule. If the other side proves that your own carelessness helped cause the crash, you recover nothing: not a reduced amount, nothing (Knight v. Alabama Power Co., 580 So. 2d 576 (Ala. 1991)). The same case holds that it is no defense to wanton conduct. And it is a high bar for the defense: the Supreme Court of Alabama has held that simple heedlessness is not enough to decide it as a matter of law, and that it is ordinarily a question for the jury (Lafarge North America, Inc. v. Nord, 86 So. 3d 326 (Ala. 2011)).

What you can do

1. Get the police report number and a copy of the report.

2. Tell your own insurer about the crash promptly, and ask whether your policy includes uninsured-motorist coverage.

3. Keep the names of anyone who saw the crash, and any photos of your car and the scene.

4. Ask nearby businesses about camera footage soon, before it is recorded over.

5. Even if you are handling this yourself, you would be best served by a brief phone consultation with a local Alabama attorney before you act. Most lawyers offer a short initial call at no cost, and a few minutes on your specific facts — and on how your court actually handles this — is worth more than any general guidance, including this page.

⏱ Time limits apply. Ala. Code § 6-2-38(l):

(l) All actions for any injury to the person or rights of another not arising from contract and not specifically enumerated in this section must be brought within two years.

Your policy's own notice requirements may run much sooner, so tell your insurer now.