If you need to consult with an attorney or would like more information on tort options, please contact the Erie County Bar Association's Lawyer Referral & Information Service.

In Pennsylvania, when you buy an auto insurance policy you will be asked to choose either the Limited Tort Option or the Full Tort Option. Your choice is very important in the event that you or your family is hurt in a car accident.

First, what is a ‘tort?’ A tort is a civil wrong, or wrongful act, whether intentional or accidental, that results in harm. Negligence is one primary example of a tort.

Your automobile insurance tort selection determines if you will be allowed to seek full compensation for all bodily injuries.

If you choose limited tort, you and your household members will not be permitted to recover “non-monetary damages” for an injury unless that injury meets the definition of a “serious injury”. Non-monetary damages include things like physical pain and suffering, inconvenience, loss of life’s pleasures, embarrassment, humiliation and similar losses. If you choose full tort, you retain all of your rights, including the right to recover compensation for all injuries. If you give up rights by selecting limited tort, you will receive an insurance premium reduction.

So, the question is exactly what are you giving up in exchange for a Limited Tort premium reduction?

Since you would be giving up compensation only for injuries that are not considered serious, you need to understand how the law defines such injuries. The  law  defines “serious  injury” as  death,  serious  impairment  of  bodily  function  or  permanent serious  disfigurement. However, other than the category of death, this definition creates substantial uncertainty as to whether any particular injury will qualify as a serious injury so as to allow you to seek compensation. Injuries such as fractured bones that heal without any residual disability have been found not to qualify as serious injuries. Therefore, as we move along the spectrum of possible bodily injuries, it is very difficult to predict whether any particular injury will be deemed to qualify as a serious injury.

Even if you select limited tort, and even if your injury is not serious, there are a number of situations where you still would be able to recover fully for non-monetary damages. These situations include:

1. when the at-fault driver is convicted of DUI or accepts ARD after being charged with DUI;

2. when the  at-fault driver is operating  a  motor  vehicle registered in another state;

3. when  the  at-fault  driver  has  acted  with  the  intent  to injure himself or another;

4. when   the   at-fault   driver   has   violated   the   law’s requirement to have insurance (or some other form of financial responsibility);   

5. when the injured person is occupying a vehicle that is principally used  for commercial purposes (other than farming);

6. when the injured person is occupying a vehicle that is owned by a corporation or other entity;

7. when the person who elected the Limited Tort option didn’t sign the form required by law, or the election form signed was legally inadequate;

8. when the injured person is a pedestrian; and 

9. when  there  are  competing  tort  options  that  apply (under some circumstances).

You are permitted to change your tort selection at any time by contacting your insurance agent. Of course, any change will be applied from that point forward only.

If you have questions about limited tort or full tort and its application to a particular situation, you should talk to a lawyer.

Information is current as of 2/2019.