HOW DO YOU SETTLE AGAINST A SINGLE INSURANCE CARRIER WITHOUT HURTING YOUR CASE?

By Ben Sessions on May 29th, 2016 in Car / Auto Accident

Settling part of your personal injury case with a single insurer without hurting your ability to seek recovery from other insurers that may provide coverage for the same accident is a really important right.

In any instance where a claim arising out of a motor vehicle accident is covered by two or more insurance carriers, one such carrier may tender, and the claimant may accept, the limits of such policy; and, in the event of multiple claimants, the settling carrier may tender, and the claimants may accept, the limits of the policy pursuant to a written agreement between or among the claimants. Such claimant or claimants may execute a limited release applicable to the settling carrier and its insured based on injuries to such claimants including, without limitation, claims for loss of consortium or loss of services asserted by any person.

O.C.G.A. § 33-24-41.1.

Particularly in car accidents resulting in serious injury, this is an important right. What if you were involved in an accident that resulted in catastrophic injuries to you, the insurer for the driver that hit you only provided $50,000.00 in coverage to their insured, so they offered to pay that amount to you.

That seemed reasonable enough, so you accepted the insurer’s $50,000.00 and you executed a general release for the insurer and the at-fault driver.

When you signed that document, you have almost certainly barred any recovery that you may have obtained from your uninsured motorist carrier. So, that $1,000,000.00 uninsured/underinsured motorist policy that you have been paying towards for the last decade will go unused by virtue of the general release.

Be careful. Consult with a qualified car accident attorney before you execute any release in any accident.