How are worst case auto accidents covered? e.g. If a drunk driver knocks a packed school bus off a cliff

@lene22 So dumb that you were downvoted for asking an honest question that you didn’t know the answer to. I work in insurance and I seriously don’t know what crawled up the ass of the people in this sub. Maybe they are mad because you asked how it was covered instead of if it was covered? Either way a bunch of fragile egos on display here.
 
@avi90able For real. If you aren't in the industry and are trying to understand, let them ask. If an insurance professional was asking in r/insurancepros, I'd understand the vitriol
 
@resjudicata That is not necessarily true. Take the guy driving the semi that killed what, 4 people on the interstate in CO.

They did not have nearly enough to make right what happened to those people
 
@lene22 They don’t cover it - it can be covered by the, say the bus company, if they have underinsured motorist coverage or possibly an umbrella policy. Also if the children - again school bus incident - if the parents have PIP or med pay on their own policy it may cover the children. But in terms of large settlements or lots of damages, one policy limits are hit, then that’s it - which is why you often see these cases land up in court with families suing the driver that caused the accident.
 
@lene22 On top of what everyone else has said, the Plaintiff’s attorney will also likely sue any org/company that could have anything remotely to do with it. Even if say the drunk driver appears to be 100% at fault, they’ll sue the district, the bus company, etc. just to get as much insurance available as possible because a claim like that isn’t one that any company would want to try because if hit for even a small % it would be incredibly costly.

Edit: changed “clearly 100% at fault” to “appears to be…”
 
@lene22 An example of this is the Station nightclub fire. A band set off pyrotechnics inside the club which ignited a fire that killed 100 people and injured over 200 others.

Over $100 million was paid by various defendants including $5 million from Anheuser-Busch, who advertised their beer at the club; $5 million from Home Depot, who sold the club insulation; $22 million from the radio station which emcee’d that night; $30 million from the tv station who had a reporter filming a report that night; and $10 million from the city and state governments.

Most of these defendants never admitted any fault at all but still settled.
 
@lene22 Because the risk of trying a case with a bunch of dead kids is incredibly high. Sympathy plays a massive part in claims and when you’re relying on a jury to say “nobody contributed in any way except the drunk driver” that’s a massive roll of the dice.
 
@adnane So the insurance companies of every party involved, bus driver, bus line, etc., would pay some portion of the difference, relative to the risk they perceive of a jury trial?

It seems a bit weird to allow folks to punish people just doing their jobs, since the insurance rates will have to be raised to cover the cost.

Also, presumably they only pay a small fraction of the total amount, is the rest then left for the children's families to cover?
 
@lene22 They would weigh the risks of trying the case and likely try to negotiate if they believe they would be unsuccessful in getting dismissed from the case.

Welcome to US litigation. Juries are often unpredictable and often give out Monopoly money verdicts. It’s always a risk assessment.

I don’t know how to answer your last question. Maybe they would. Who knows.
 
@lene22 The driver’s insurance would pay to the limit of their policy of whatever out of pocket medical expenses the injured parties accrue.

The rest will be up to the victims to sue against the driver.
 
@adnane That’s a bit reductive. A carrier that is 100% not at fault will be let out on summary judgment. They don’t pay just because of damages alone. There has to be at least SOME evidence of contributory negligence.
 
@bluspirit Well if we want to be pedantic the “carrier” is not the one being dismissed on SJ because they’re not the defendant.

And sure, I can edit it to say that “even if it APPEARS the drunk driver is 100%…” but the sentiment remains the same.
 
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