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my underinsured mortorist coverage at risk if i accept (less than) policy limits

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guineapig

Junior Member
California

special damages only: minor physical injuries, also psychological (no general damages). an independent judge has valued my case (one of many plaintiffs for same accident) at an amount that is $20,000 more than my underinsured motorist, $50,000.

of multiple plaintiffs and defendants, one defendant has settled for insurance limits, of which my portion is about $7,000. i do not foresee getting anything else from other defendants; maybe a little from one via negotiation.

law suit in pro per was filed against the multiple plaintiffs. of question: if i agree to negotiate with the driver’s carrier for a portion of the insurance policy, will my underinsured motorist coverage be at risk? will my insurance carrier not pay out on my uim? of the $500K policy limit for the driver, i will probably get a few hundred dollars, not more than $1K.
i am told that homesteading and Petition in Bankruptcy will protect his assets.What is the name of your state?
 


ecmst12

Senior Member
Your post is unclear. Are you accepting less then the at-fault party's policy limits because there are multiple claimants and the policy has to be pro-rated? If so, then you will still be able to claim on your UIM coverage.
 
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guineapig

Junior Member
Your post is unclear. Are you accepting less then the at-fault party's policy limits because there are multiple claimants and the policy has to be pro-rated? If so, then you will still be able to claim on your UIM coverage.
no matter what happens, the policy will be prorated by a small board of council representing all claimants which have own attorneys. the question is, do i want to be part of that all inclusive group and agree to both policy limit and a prorated portion of that limit, or do i go forward with the suit against the driver? but like i said, i have been told that homesteading and bankruptcy petition will protect other assets (since accident was unintentional), which implies proceeding with law suit will gain nothing from the driver. but is this necessary, proceed and gain nothing, to get my uim even though an independent judge has said my case is worth greater than my uim?

there are scores of claimants (less than 60); most have decided to not only accept policy limits for this driver but to negotiate for less than that. it is explained that less than policy because a small number of plaintiffs are not going to negotiate (but proceed with full law suit in court) and that some of the policy must be reserved for them (or i guess the carrier would be liable for bad faith or something like that).

you might be asking, am i agreeing to accept policy first or am i agreeing to accept a portion of policy. which comes first? i guess i am agreeing to accept policy ($500,000) and due to the high number of plaintiffs and their greater special and general damages, i will get a small prorated portion of that policy; but that it is because of the proratedness that i gett less than what i deserve. if i have said this right. so then, will my carrier claim i do not get uim cause i agreed for policy which i knew was being prorated so i would get substantially less than i deserved? i do not know yet how much of the $500K i would get but my estimate is less than $1,000.00.
thanks for your help.
 

ecmst12

Senior Member
I answered your question. What did your attorney tell you? And what the heck happened that there were 60 claimants? Did the person hit a bus or something?
 

guineapig

Junior Member
I answered your question. What did your attorney tell you? And what the heck happened that there were 60 claimants? Did the person hit a bus or something?
would explain more in private message; i just activated my profile to do so. i do not have an attorney; in pro per. but uhh, no, not a bus, a market so to speak.
thanks for your help.
 

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