PD Limits Question from a Professional

INSUREGEEK

Super Genius
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Ohio
So, I have 20+ years experience in insurance, but I need help with an unusual claims scenario:

I am in SW Ohio which is pretty much the heroin capital of the US as far as I know. My parked and unoccupied vehicle was taken out by someone who OD'd on something (assume it was heroin - the Narcan woke him up!) and took out my car and several others in the process.

I do not carry collision on this car. I do get to carry UMPD here, and I am surely covered there even if it can at times be difficult to prove and collect. The vehicle that hit mine was owned by someone with verified insurance coverage, but I am unsure of the PD limits available. The OD driver was her boyfriend.

My 2004 Chevy will definitely be a total loss, as will at least 2-3 other cars that were hit. According to the accident reconstruction team, my car was the first one hit. But here's the rub.......

When sorting a monster Auto PD claim with insufficient limits - how is it determined who gets paid what? Assume state minimum of 25K. How is that limit divvied up?

The car that got hit first?
The cars that didn't have collision or UMPD?
The first claimant to get thru to a claims rep?
What am I up against in collecting a UMPD claim?

Any advice or input is appreciated.



PS - The guy got revived with Narcan....refused medical treatment...is currently in jail. It will be 48 hours before I see a police report.

Happy Halloween to me :1tongue:
 
Sorry to hear that - bad surprise any day of the year.
It's been 9 years since I was in the law firm world, and I'm sure Ohio might have some differences from SC, but I've seen it handled a couple of ways, that I can recall:

Policy limits distributed in proportion to the loss sustained by each party

Preference given to the party least able to tolerate loss for lack of uim

Your results, of course, may vary.

Hope all goes smoothly.
 
Thank you!

I went ahead and filed a UMPD claim with my carrier. They say they will look at the car, but will wait for the at-fault party's carrier to respond with whether or not coverage is in force, and total limit available.

I will keep the board posted on the progress of the claim. Any additional experience and advice is appreciated.
 
I would guess they would add up all the damage and give you the proportionate amount based on the damage you received
 
Usually the available limit is paid out proportional to the loss among everyone who files a legit claim.

UMPD rules vary by state, but usually won't pay if there is coverage elsewhere. I know in CA, it won't fill in for under-insured.

On the other hand, if you take 25K and divide it over 4 cars, that is around $6K per car (assuming divided somewhat evenly). Since you didn't have collision coverage, is that not enough to cover your car?

Dan
 
I verified that there is a 25K PD limit available. They're waiting to assess all of the damages before I can get a check. I don't see 25K covering all of the damages:

2012 Ford Fiesta - totaled
2001 VW Cabrio - totaled
2004 Chev Malibu(mine) - totaled
2012 Honda Civic - close to total
2013 Toyota Camry - heavily damaged

Dan - I'd settle my car as a total loss for about $3500 - it's a 2004 with 160,000 miles. My son drives it.

Thanks for the info - I'll be back when I know more. Right now I'm just po'd that I "have" to take it to their drive-thru for an estimate. I think if they want to see it, they can send someone to me. I didn't choose them as my carrier and the accident wasn't my fault. Oh, well. End rant.
 
Just an update:

It's been 2 weeks since the accident, and insurance company just today saw car #3 of the 5 that were damaged.
 
My check is in the mail, and I'll retain salvage because I can do that.

My shop has one of the other cars in for repair, so I got to talk to the adjuster last week.

2012 Ford Fiesta - totaled (hasn't presented a claim, I see it on the road every day though)
2001 VW Cabrio - totaled ($4000 non driver)
2004 Chev Malibu(mine) - totaled ($3500 driveable but unsafe)
2012 Honda Civic - close to total ($8000 non driver)
2013 Toyota Camry - heavily damaged ($6000 driver)

= about $21,500 paid out in PD limits

I will share more if I can find out more. I'm feeling sorry for the Fiesta. I live and work close by and see this car every day driving around like normal. It literally got sandwiched side-to-side between 2 other cars.
 
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Well, that took a while, but i'm glad it worked out for you.

Dan

Thank you!

IDK though - I'm still curious about that Fiesta! Like I said, it's smashed on both sides, but I see it driving around town all the time. Maybe Fiesta let their own coverage lapse and figured all was lost.
 
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