Fatal Car Crash in the Baltimore Region: How an Underinsured Driver Problem Was Resolved

What happened?

A member of our client’s family was killed in a crash caused by another driver in the Baltimore region. Police came and wrote a crash report. An ambulance took the family’s loved one to a hospital for emergency care that same day. The injuries were fatal.

The family hired us about a week later. Our client was the personal representative of the estate, the person with legal authority to act for it.

Within that first week, we sent letters to the at-fault driver’s insurer and to the insurer on their loved one’s own auto policy, covering both personal injury protection (PIP) and UIM. The at-fault insurer first said liability was under review while it waited for the police report. About two months after the crash, it offered its full policy limit.

Fault wasn’t the hard part of this case. Coverage was.

What did the family lose?

The family lost someone they loved, suddenly and without warning. No settlement changes that. What a claim can do is hold the at-fault driver’s insurance, and any other coverage that applies, responsible for the harm.

We don’t share the private details of this family’s loss here. Those are theirs to keep.

In Maryland, a fatal crash can lead to two kinds of claims. A wrongful death claim is brought for certain close family members for their own loss. A survival claim is brought by the estate for what the person who died suffered and lost, along with costs like medical and funeral expenses.

Who can bring a wrongful death claim is set by law. It’s usually a spouse, parent, or child. Both kinds of claims were part of this family’s recovery.

Here, the medical care lasted only one day, and the bills were modest. Funeral expenses were submitted for the death benefits in their loved one’s own policy.

What care was given after the crash?

Care was limited to the day of the crash: an ambulance ride and emergency treatment at the hospital.

Those bills were paid by their loved one’s health coverage, including Medicare-related coverage, and PIP was billed as well. PIP pays certain medical bills no matter who caused the crash.

When Medicare has paid for crash-related care, it generally has a right to be repaid from a settlement. The case couldn’t close until Medicare confirmed it was owed nothing.

The practical takeaway: Tell your lawyer about every kind of coverage that paid for care, including Medicare. Leaving one out can hold up the whole settlement.

How did the loss affect the family?

Grief came first. Then came the paperwork, at the hardest possible time.

Insurers wanted forms, a death certificate, and proof of the estate’s authority. An estate had to be opened. The estate court had to approve the final accounting before money could be distributed.

Our job was to carry as much of that weight as we could. We dealt with the insurers, worked directly with the estate’s lawyer, and explained each step, so the family didn’t have to relay documents back and forth.

In Maryland, a wrongful death claim can generally include the family’s emotional loss, such as grief and the loss of companionship, and for some family members, the loss of financial support. A survival claim can generally include the person’s medical and funeral expenses. Maryland law limits some types of damages, and your lawyer can explain how that applies to your family.

What made this case difficult?

The core problem was simple: the driver who caused the crash had far too little insurance for a death claim.

Not enough insurance. The at-fault driver carried a low policy limit, far below the value of the family’s loss.

No assets to pursue. An asset search found nothing collectible, so suing the driver personally would likely have produced nothing.

Protecting the UIM claim. Accepting the at-fault limit without the family insurer’s consent could have put the UIM claim at risk.

Estate requirements. Insurers asked for proof of the estate’s authority, a death certificate, and in one case a court order before paying. Every distribution needed the estate court’s approval.

Medicare. The settlement couldn’t be finalized until Medicare confirmed what it was owed.

Slow insurers. Releases and checks took repeated follow-up, and one adjuster went on extended leave in the middle of payment.

None of these problems was about who caused the crash. All of them were about getting the coverage paid the right way.

How did we handle it?

Opened every claim at once. Within days, we put the at-fault insurer and the family’s own insurer on notice for PIP and UIM.

Secured the at-fault limit. The insurer offered its full policy limit about two months after the crash.

Protected the UIM claim. In Maryland, you generally have to give your own insurer written notice of the offer before you accept it, or you can put your UIM claim at risk. We sent that notice and got the family insurer’s consent before accepting.

Ran an asset search. We checked whether the at-fault driver had anything worth pursuing. Nothing collectible turned up.

Found every other benefit. We collected the UIM coverage, policy death benefits, and medical payments coverage from their loved one’s own auto policy. We also checked a homeowner’s policy and another family member’s auto policy for coverage.

Handled Medicare. We worked through Medicare’s process until it confirmed nothing was owed.

Worked with the estate’s lawyer. We supplied records, expense printouts, and proof for the estate court accounting.

The turning point was the family insurer’s consent. Getting it before accepting the at-fault limit kept the UIM claim alive. That second layer of coverage nearly doubled the bodily-injury recovery.

What was the result?

The claims resolved without a lawsuit. Settlement funds arrived about 13 months after the family hired us, and the money was distributed about 18 months in, after the estate court approved the accounting.

The recovery came from three sources: the at-fault driver’s full policy limit, UIM coverage, and death benefits from their loved one’s own auto policy. The family’s own coverage nearly doubled the bodily-injury recovery. Medicare confirmed it was owed nothing.

Every case is different. Our past results are no assurance that we will reach a favorable result in any future case.

What this means if you’re in a similar situation

Check your loved one’s auto policy for UIM coverage and death benefits. They can matter more than the at-fault driver’s insurance.

Don’t accept the at-fault driver’s policy limit until your own insurer has been notified and consents.

Expect insurers to ask for estate paperwork. Opening the estate early can keep payments from stalling.

Watch the clock. In Maryland, a wrongful death claim generally must be filed within three years of the death.

Will Medicare take part of the settlement?

It might. If Medicare paid for crash-related care, it generally has the right to be repaid from the settlement, and the case usually can’t close until Medicare confirms what it’s owed. Here, we worked through Medicare’s process, and it confirmed nothing was owed. Always tell your lawyer if Medicare or other insurance paid any bills.