Miller v. USAA General Indemnity Company, No. 23-1934 (3d Cir. Jan. 7, 2025) - The plaintiff, who resided with her daughter in the home of her daughter’s paternal grandmother, sought UIM benefits under an auto insurance...more
In Wolf v. Riverport Insurance Co., the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court’s holding, under Illinois law, that an underinsured motorist insurer did not breach its insurance contract, and no implied...more
Accidents are stressful under any circumstances, but they can become even more complicated when they involve uninsured or underinsured drivers. In Florida, a state known for its high rate of uninsured motorists, understanding...more
In Erie Insurance Exchange v. Hannah Baluch, ___ A.3d ___, 2025 WL 22562 (Pa. Super. Ct., Jan. 3, 2025), the Pennsylvania Superior Court addressed whether an insured with her own automobile insurance policy is entitled to...more
An owner, general contractor (GC) and subcontractor (Sub) were sued by injured workers at a construction site, and they were defended by the Sub’s insurer, U.S. Specialty Insurance Company. U.S. Specialty tendered their...more
Progressive Express Insurance Company v. Rasier-DC, LLC, 2024 WL 1831535 (S.D. Fla. Mar. 19, 2024) - The defendant insurance company brought a declaratory judgment action to determine whether the policy it wrote to a...more
Key Points: In Florida, a divorced or separated spouse of an auto insurance policyholder may be entitled to uninsured or underinsured motorist (UM) benefits under their former spouse’s auto policy....more
On July 1, 2024, new Virginia Code § 8.01-66.1 became effective and created a new bad faith cause of action that can be significant for underinsured or uninsured (“UIM”) carriers....more
In most states, drivers must have automobile liability coverage to pay damages caused by a driver's negligence. Failure to do so can result in fines and denial of registration. According to the Insurance Information Institute...more
Some jurisdictions consider the ISO-form "bodily injury" definition to be ambiguous as to whether emotional distress requires physical harm to be bodily injury. Many insurers have amended bodily injury to expressly require a...more
Dominance was the theme of this year’s NCAA basketball tournament, with the UConn men’s team winning back-to-back championships and the South Carolina women’s team reclaiming the title with a perfect record. But let’s not...more
Each state has its own specific set of car insurance laws laying out certain requirements for its residents. In 2023, North Carolina passed notable legislative changes to the State’s car insurance laws, increasing the minimum...more
Several years ago, I published a blog regarding the number of occurrences triggered under a liability policy for a motor vehicle accident in Florida. Other states also addressed this issue. Recently, the Federal District...more
The close of 2023 solidified trends in established class action theories and provided a glimpse of new theories to come. In the auto total loss valuation sphere, one that has seen a lot of action for many years,...more
Golik v. Erie Ins. Exch., 300 A.3d 514 (Pa. Super. Ct. Aug. 7, 2023) - Mr. Golik was issued an auto insurance policy by the defendant in 1992. After marriage, Mrs. Golik was added to the policy as a named insured. Mr. Golik...more
In Neptune v. Indian Harbor Insurance Co., the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals recently addressed whether uninsured motorist (UM) coverage applied in an accident where there was no evidence of a “hit” from the uninsured...more
Florida is in a minority of states which employ a “no-fault” personal injury system. This results in car accident victims first having to file a claim against their own insurance before submitting a claim to a defendant’s...more
This year began like the last one ended, with lots of activity. Total loss class actions kept going around the country, and labor depreciation class actions experienced ups and downs, depending on one’s viewpoint. New class...more
A plaintiff cannot recover attorney’s fees in a Florida lawsuit for Uninsured Motorist (“UM”) benefits unless there is a dispute about whether the insurance policy provides coverage. However, attorney’s fees from the...more
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Automobile insurance policies specify a maximum amount the insurer will pay for a single accident. This coverage limit applies both to liability and uninsured/underinsured motorist (“UM”) coverages. ...more
People often ask me “how much car insurance do I need?” Never has this question been more important than now. Michigan drivers now face the biggest changes in auto No-Fault insurance since the No-Fault Act was enacted in...more
A recent decision involving insurance coverage for a rideshare driver explains the temporal aspect of rideshare policies, which insure drivers during certain phases of the rideshare process. Here a driver sought uninsured...more
“Michigan stops LA Insurance’s sale of 7 day car insurance policies, but will the uninsured driver problem in Detroit improve now that 7 day policies are being replaced with 6 month car insurance with installment payments?” ...more
The Holding - In Hanfelder v. Geico Indem. Co., WL 2018 WL 2315949 (May 22, 2018), the Arizona Court of Appeals reversed summary judgment granted to an Insurer because the Policy’s “imprecise” anti-stacking language did...more