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Insurance Company Must Stack Multiple UM Coverages If The Anti-Stacking Language Is Not Clear.

Multiple UM Coverages Farmers issued two separate auto policies to the Torres family.  Both policies included uninsured coverage.

The Torres daughter was injured when a moped on which she was a passenger crashed.  There was no coverage on the moped so Mr. Torres turned to her parent’s auto policy for UM coverage.

The company admitted coverage and paid one of the two UM coverages.  However, it argued that it owed no duty to stack the policies because of the anti-stacking provision in an Endorsement. The trial court agreed that the anti-stacking provision of the policies prevented stacking. 

In Torres v. Farmers Ins. Exch., 106 Nev. 340, 793 P.2d 839 (1990) the Nevada Supreme Court considered the policy provision in light of NRS 687B.145.  The court explained that in order to be enforced, the anti-stacking provision must be clear, the clause must be prominently displayed and the insured cannot have paid two separate premiums.

The court said that the provision was not clear.  Therefore, it refused to allow the anti-stacking provision to be enforced.

If you have further questions about UM/UIM stacking in Nevada, please contact Mike Mills at Bauman Loewe Witt & Maxwell.  He can be reached at 702.240.6060×114.  You can also send him an email at mmills@blwmlawfirm.com.

About Michael Mills

Mr. Mills practices in the area of civil litigation and appeals, with particular experience in matters involving trucking liability, insurance defense, insurance coverage, premises liability, products liability and defense of personal injury. Mr. Mills is a member of the Trucking Insurance Defense Association, the Defense Research Institute Trucking Committee and the Nevada Motor Transport Association. Mr. Mills is licensed to practice before the Nevada Supreme Court and the Utah Supreme Court. He is also licensed to appear before the United States Supreme Court, the U.S. District Courts for the Districts of Nevada and Utah, as well as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Mr. Mills has created 3 Blogs for the benefit of the insurance industry. He serves as editor and publisher of the Nevada Insurance Law Blog, the Nevada Coverage and Bad Faith Blog and the Nevada Trucking Law Blog.

 
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