As a subrogation professional, often times one of the hardest aspects of the career to understand is that you have to put on your plaintiff’s “hat” in order to prove your case and make a recovery. This involves gathering facts and understanding how tort law applies in your claim. Inevitably, when a fellow attorney or subrogation adjuster…
As you may know, Gary Wickert recently appeared on a national radio program, hosted by Larry Cohen. The program, which was produced by Ringler Radio and entitled “Driverless Car Litigation”, focused on the ever-changing intersection between the exploding industry of self-driving vehicles, product liability litigation, and the auto insurance industry. The latest innovations in driverless cars were…
Your insured’s eighteen-wheeler is struck head-on by another vehicle travelling at a high rate of speed, resulting in significant medical expenses to your insured driver and a passenger, as well as considerable property damage to your insured’s vehicle. The tortfeasor died instantly. Subrogation efforts reveal adequate liability coverage for the responsible driver and you present your…
Beginning July 1, 2018, Maryland auto insurers issuing new policies will be required to offer enhanced underinsured motorist (“EUIM”) coverage in place of the uninsured motorist (“UM”) coverage required under § 19-509. Md. Code Ins. § 19-501.1(d). Unlike UM coverage, EUIM coverage prohibits the carrier from reducing the coverage amount by any applicable liability insurance paid…
There is seemingly no end to the attacks on a workers’ compensation carrier’s rights of subrogation and reimbursement when a third-party is liable for a work-related injury. In New Jersey, however, the Supreme Court will soon be deciding whether even the employee is prohibited from suing a customer of his employer, when forced to sign a…
On September 26, 2017, a truck spilled thousands of roofing nails on Interstate 10 in Metairie, Louisiana (a suburb of New Orleans). Hundreds of vehicles rolled over the nails and sustained punctured tires, resulting in replacement of tires that may total as much as $1,000 per vehicle. The Louisiana State Police cited the driver for failing…
According to a 1999 study commissioned by the Alliance of American Insurers (AAI), if you were to build a $25,000 vehicle using only Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) parts, it would cost you over $100,000. When repairing vehicles damaged in accidents, insurance companies argue that the use of look-alike, aftermarket (non-OEM) generic crash parts significantly contributes…
Mandatory Arbitration of Auto Physical Damage Claims Now a Thing Of The Past The game of musical chairs regarding the Illinois law that requires mandatory arbitration of auto physical damage subrogation claims is finally over. The music has stopped and the statute has been repealed. The needless expense and waste of time associated with the…
Almost any time money changes hands in America, there are tax issues. The Internal Revenue Code (I.R.C.) is over 75,000 pages long, and contains fives times as many words as the Bible. The federal tax rules and resources within the CCH Standard Federal Tax Reporter exceed 75,000 pages, enough to fill a small library. More daunting…
The Iowa legislature has finally acted on the call by Iowa business groups to overhaul Iowa’s workers’ compensation system. For years, they have claimed that the state’s system has tilted unfairly toward injured workers and significantly raised employers’ costs. Many have called Iowa’s workers’ compensation system an “unsustainable litigious lottery.” In March, the changes became…