The law firm recently settled an underinsured motorist case against State Farm Insurance Company (“State Farm”) for $400,000. An underinsured motorist case exists when the victim of a car crash has injuries that are worth more than the at-fault driver’s insurance policy. In that situation, after we collect the full policy limits from the at-fault driver’s insurance coverage, we can make a claim for underinsured motorist coverage against our client’s insurance company.
Our client suffered multiple rib fractures, an elbow fracture, and an ankle fracture. The at-fault driver’s insurance company paid their full policy of $100,000. We then made the underinsured motorist claim against State Farm. We demanded that State Farm pay their full policy limits, which we believed to be $400,000. After extensive negotiations, State Farm finally agreed to pay $400,000.
That is when the plot thickens. After we accepted the $400,000 on behalf of our client, State Farm claimed that they had made a mistake, and that their policy only provided coverage of $300,000, and refused to pay the agreed upon settlement of $400,000.
Senior Claims Manager Melonie Mills had documented the file to perfection to prevent the insurance adjuster from escaping its agreed upon obligation. At one point in the negotiations, the insurance adjuster had written a letter claiming that the insurance coverage was $300,000, even though she had previously advised us that the policy limit was $400,000. Ms. Mills immediately e-mailed the adjuster that she was mistaken, and confirmed that we had been advised the coverage was $400,000. The insurance adjuster did not respond to Ms. Mills’ e-mail but later offered $400,000. Our client accepted the $400,000 offer, and Ms. Mills promptly confirmed his acceptance, in writing. But then, State Farm withdrew the offer.
Partner Allan M. Siegel negotiated with multiple supervisors, moving up the corporate chain, until he could get someone who had authority to authorize a payment over the policy limits. Armed with the paper trail, so professionally created by our Senior Claims Manager, extraordinaire, Melonie Mills, Mr. Siegel was able to convince State Farm to capitulate and pay the full $400,000. This was the first time in the history of the firm that an insurance company paid a settlement in excess of the policy limits, without litigation.
