$30,000 uninsured motorist insurance settlement for woman who suffered personal injury when hit by a drunk driver in Miami, Florida

Our client’s main personal injury, per the radiologist that her treating chiropractor referred her to, was a herniated disc that was impinging on the spinal cord and theca sac. Her mother’s uninsured/underinsured motorist company was GEICO. The policy offered $10,000 of available uninsured/undersinsured motorist coverage per vehicle, and there were three (3) motor vehicles insured by the policy. Unfortunately, the drunk driver’s insurance was expired at the time of the accident. The drunk driver who caused the car accident refused to blow into the breathalyzer. She was arrested and charged with DUI. Her criminal case was still pending while our client’s underinsured motorist insurance personal injury claim was open with GEICO.

Lawyer Ziegler sent GEICO a demand letter which included our client’s medical bills, records, etc. We gave GEICO five (5) days to deliver a settlement check in the amount of $30,000 to our office. We allowed GEICO to have their doctor reread the MRI report. According to the GEICO adjuster, GEICO’s radiologist stated that our client had a bulging disc (not a herniation) and that it was not pressing on the spinal cord. GEICO offered $20,000. We spoke with our client and advised her not to accept this offer. We also argued that our client’s injury was significant and that we were seeking punitive damages. GEICO failed to timely (within 30 days) send us copy of the uninsured motorist policy which they are required to under Florida insurance law. We alleged that GEICO failed to act in good faith in accordance with Florida laws. Our law firm argued that stacking coverage should allow her to seek a maximum recovery from GEICO of $30,000. We take a very tough stance against drunk drivers. We worked so quickly resolving this claim that our client had not even finished treating by the time GEICO settled the claim for $30,000.