News
Bob Janicki and A.J. Sano Obtain Summary Judgment for Insurance Client in Coverage Litigation
March 8, 2010
Bob Janicki and A.J. Sano recently obtained summary judgment for Zurich American Insurance Company in the case, Zurich v. Mitchell, 2010 U.S. Dist. Lexis 6747.
The insurer denied Underinsured Motorist (UIM) coverage to its insured’s employee, who was injured in an auto-accident. The insured had waived/rejected UIM coverage on its fleet vehicles. However, the claimant argued that the insured’s waiver/rejection of UIM coverage did not comply with the requirements of Utah Code Ann. § 31A-22-305.3(2)(b) because the insurer had not disclosed what the additional premium cost would be to have UIM coverage equal to the policy’s liability limit. The district court concluded that the insurer was under no obligation to disclose the additional premium cost information where the insured had waived UIM coverage in its entirety. Accordingly, the court found that the insured’s UIM waiver/rejection was valid and enforceable.