As part of our ongoing commitment to serving our clients, the Personal Injury Attorneys at Parnell Michels and McKay review changes to New Hampshire law in order to ensure we continue to obtain the best results for our clients. This week, there was a significant update in the law regarding uninsured motorist claims.
Pelissier addressed a statute of limitations argument regarding uninsured/underinsured motorist claims. This case involved a scenario all too common in motor vehicle accidents, where the driver at fault has too little insurance to cover the serious injuries they caused another innocent driver. In those circumstances, an under-insured motorist claim with the innocent driver’s insurance is appropriate. However, these claims are subject to the same three-year statute of limitations that most other injury claims are subject to.
Pelissier specifically addressed the issue where after the original statute of limitations has expired, the innocent driver discovers that the at fault driver has too little insurance. This occurs because insurance companies may not disclose their policies until after a lawsuit has been filed, where they are forced to disclose such documents. Pelissier clarified that the statute of limitations which applies in this scenario begins to run when the innocent driver discovers that the at fault driver does not have enough insurance to cover their injuries. Even if this occurs after the statute of limitations has expired for the original action, the discovery of the lack of insurance begins the timing for a new statute of limitations. The reason for this is twofold, first, because an injured driver may not know that there is insufficient insurance until litigation has begun, and second because the under-insured motorist action can stand separately from the original action.
For our clients, this means that beginning the process of opening a claim is even more significant than before, because opening a claim with the other driver’s insurance might be the first step to getting full compensation for their injuries, whether through the other driver’s insurance, or through their own.
The Personal Injury Attorneys at Parnell, Michels, and McKay have experience and proven success with litigating under-insured motorist claims. If you have been in an auto accident with serious injuries, where the at fault driver’s insurance may not be enough to compensate your injuries, please contact our team for a consultation with one of our attorneys today.