Louisiana penalizes injured drivers who were breaking the financial-responsibility law at the time of the crash. The penalty is steep, but it is not total.
The two $100,000 thresholds
Under La. R.S. 32:866, an uninsured owner or operator hurt in a crash cannot recover:
- the first $100,000 of bodily-injury damages; and
- the first $100,000 of property-damage.
These amounts were raised by Act 16 of the 2025 Regular Session. Damages above each threshold remain recoverable.
Who it hits, and who it does not
The bar applies to the person who was required to insure the vehicle and did not. Passengers, pedestrians, and others not responsible for that vehicle’s coverage are not subject to it. Fault is decided separately — No Pay No Play does not make the uninsured driver at fault, it only limits what an uninsured at-victim can collect.
If you were uninsured when you were hurt, the case is harder but not hopeless. A Louisiana injury lawyer can value the part of your claim that survives the threshold.