Insurance Company Pays More Than 2X Policy Limits Following Jury Trial

Attorney Tyler Dillard recently represented a car wreck victim in a Gwinnett County State Court Jury trial. The firm’s client suffered a concussion and torn knee ligament from a driver who ran a red light. The Defendant driver was insured by a major insurance company. Prior to trial, Tyler and his client offered to settle with the insurance company for the Defendant’s policy limits of $50,000. The insurance company refused and offered only $20,000. Following their refusal, Tyler began to negotiate with his client’s own insurance carrier, which provided Underinsured Motorist Coverage. Although most insurance carriers will not settle an underinsured motorist claim until the Defendant’s insurance company has paid its full policy limits, the client’s carrier saw the writing on the wall and knew that a jury would award more than the liability limits of $50,000. As a result, the client’s own carrier offered to pay $50,000 to settle its own potential exposure in the matter. Tyler and his client accepted the offer and secured the first $50,000 recovery for the client. Following this settlement, Tyler and the client proceeded to trial against the Defendant and the Defendant’s insurance company. After a two-day trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of the client in the amount of $117,500. The jury concluded that the client was telling the truth about her injuries and that her concussion and torn knee ligament were the fault of the Defendant driver. Following trial, Tyler continued to pressure the Defendant’s insurance company, and within a matter of weeks the insurance company paid the entire verdict plus interest, for a total of more than $118,000. The insurance company did not receive any credit for the prior settlement made by the client’s own carrier. Thus, after factoring in the prior settlement, Tyler collected more than $168,000 for his client when the insurance company offered to settle for only $20,000. If you have been involved in a car wreck and suffered a concussion, or if you have been seriously injured in a car accident and are unsure of how to deal with a difficult insurance company, contact Andersen, Tate & Carr for a free consultation.