When a driver who negligently shot from his car window at what he apparently thought was a skunk hit a former University of Oregon student playing paintball near Eugene, the insurer paid the limits of its bodily injury policy. It should have. But the young man injured by the unusual auto accident is now struggling to overcome a spinal cord injury from the bullet that shattered his spine and caused quadriplegia and respiratory failure. His care will require quite a bit more than the $250,000 insurance payment.
Fortunately, the student’s parents had a policy that both covered him and included up to $1 million in coverage for motor vehicle accidents caused by underinsured drivers. Underinsured motorist coverage provides benefits for personal injury and damage caused by a driver with an inadequate amount of insurance. The driver who caused the harm in this case had insurance, but not enough to compensate the plaintiff for his serious injuries. The underinsured policy is offset by whatever the injured person recovers after suing the negligent driver.
That’s how someone hurt in an Oregon auto accident is supposed to recover. In this case, however, the insurance company has refused to pay under the underinsured policy. Indeed, the company has filed suit against the student, seeking a declaration that it isn’t responsible. It’s reasoning? The personal injury “did not result from the ownership, maintenance or use of the underinsured vehicle.”
But the driver of that vehicle was using it to travel to hunt when he negligently shot from the car window. The fact that he hit the student with a bullet shouldn’t justify a result any different than the one that would follow from hitting the student with a bumper. This is an interesting injury case being handled by an outstanding Oregon trial lawyer with whom I had the pleasure of working for when I was a law student. I will be watching the outcome closely.
If you or loved ones have been injured in a serious auto collision or car accident, Portland, Oregon injury lawyer Dane Johnson offers a no-cost case consultation. The Law Office of Dane E. Johnson welcomes your contact. Use our online form or call Oregon personal injury attorney Dane Johnson directly at (503) 975-8298.
Related Web Resources
Karen McGowan, Man Injured in Hunting Accident Sues Insurer, Register-Guard, Oct. 20, 2009.
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