Finding Insurance Coverage in Wisconsin Truck Accident Cases
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Due to the high number of requests I receive from other Wisconsin attorneys about trucking cases, I am going to periodically post answers to some of the most commonly asked questions.
What follows is the answer to one of the most frequently asked questions by other Wisconsin attorneys:
My Client Has Been Injured in a Wisconsin Truck Accident. How Do I Determine the Amount of Available Insurance Coverage on the Negligent Trucker or Trucking Company?
Trucking companies engaged in interstate commerce must comply with the federal rules requiring financial responsibility. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is responsible for ensuring compliance with these federal safety responsibility laws. Unfortunately, the federal rules only require trucking companies transporting non-hazardous materials to maintain at least $750,000 of insurance coverage or prove they can pay such an amount. This requirement was enacted in 1985 and the minimum coverage limit has not change since that time. It is outdated and does not account for inflation or the skyrocketing cost of medical care.
The first step in ascertaining applicable insurance limits is searching for the specific trucking company listing on the FMCSA website. Keep in mind, this is simply the available insurance coverage on the trucking company tractors. It usually does not list all coverage available to the trucking company such as a general business policy, excess policy, or umbrella insurance policy, all of which could provide coverage to the truck accident. The driver may also have been operating under his own DOT number, in which case his insurance can be determined from the FMCSA website.
The next step in discovering the trucking company’s insurance information is to request the carrier’s federal MCS-90 endorsement form. The MCS-90 form for a trucking company can be obtained through a Freedom of Information Act Request to the FMCSA. This form is required by the FMCSA and it should list the trucking company’s primary and excess carrier and the limits of each. See 49 CFR 387.15 for a sample MCS-90 form.
If litigation has been commenced, then the truck accident injury victim’s attorney can depose the trucking company employee whose duty it was to obtain adequate insurance coverage. This individual will likely have knowledge of all of the potentially applicable insurance policies that were in place at the time of the truck accident. The insurance agent can also be deposed in order to obtain information.
Attorneys for truck accident victims should also be mindful that there may be additional insurance coverage available to the truck accident injury victim if there are allegations of negligent shipping, negligent packing, negligent maintenance, negligent hiring, negligent training, negligent supervision, or negligent retention. The trailer may also have separate insurance. There could also be available insurance coverage through the driver, for example, if the driver had “bobtail coverage” or a personal insurance policy, common in contractor situations.
Keep in mind, this list is not exhaustive but should provide the attorney with a good start on determining the amount of available insurance.
