Originally from:
Automobile Insurance Subrogation: In All 50 States - Hardcover
Automobile Insurance Subrogation: In All 50 States - Electronic
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§ 4.30 NEW HAMPSHIRE
§ 4.30[1] Subrogation Rights
New Hampshire recognizes both equitable and contractual
subrogation.1 However, whether or not equitable subrogation is
available depends on the type of insurance involved. Where a
contract is one of personal insurance, such as an auto policy
providing benefits for medical or hospital expenses, equitable
subrogation is not applicable, and there must be a contractual or
statutory right for the insurer to be entitled to subrogate.2
The reason that other lines of insurance, such as fire, property and
casualty are allowed to subrogate equitably without subrogation
language in their policy, but insurance providing for medical benefits
is not, is that medical insurance is personal insurance, unlike property
and casualty insurance which is indemnity insurance.3
§ 4.30[2] Automobile Insurance Coverage
New Hampshire is the last of the 50 states which does not require
mandatory automobile liability insurance. Wisconsin was the secondlast,
but as of June 1, 2010, Wisconsin now mandates that drivers
purchase auto liability insurance.4
Liability Insurance Coverage. Although an owner or operator of
an automobile need not obtain liability insurance coverage, any
policies issued must contain limits of $25,000 per person and
$50,000 per occurrence.5 A minimum of $25,000 for damage to
property of others is also required.6
Medical Payments (Med Pay) Coverage. As with liability
coverage, Med Pay coverage is not required. However, any motor
vehicle liability policy issued with respect to any motor vehicle
registered or principally garaged in New Hampshire must provide
Med Pay coverage in an amount equal to or greater than $1,000 per
person, covering medical costs incurred only during the three (3)
years following an accident.7
Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Coverage. PIP coverage is not
mandatory and is not required in auto policies. There are no tort
thresholds and New Hampshire does not have any no-fault insurance
laws.
Gary Wickert is an insurance trial lawyer and is regarded as one of the world's leading experts on insurance subrogation. He is also the author of several subrogation books and legal treatises and is a national and international speaker and lecturer on subrogation and motivational topics. After 15 years as the youngest managing partner in the history of the 30-lawyer Houston law firm of Hughes, Watters & Askanase, L.L.P., Mr. Wickert returned to his native Wisconsin in 1998 and co-founded the subrogation firm of Matthiesen, Wickert & Lehrer, S.C. He oversees a National Recovery Program which includes a network of nearly 285 contracted subrogation law firms in all 50 states, Mexico, Canada and the United Kingdom and boasts recoveries of more than $500 million in recoveries and credits for more than 200 insurance companies. Licensed in both Texas and Wisconsin, Mr. Wickert is double board-certified in both personal injury law and civil trial law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He is also certified as a Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy, for whom he has both written and graded the product liability questions contained on the NBTA national certification exam taken by trial lawyers around the country. For 25 years, Mr. Wickert has served as an expert witness and insurance consultant on subrogation and insurance related issues and has been consulted by insurance carriers, lawyers, and legislative bodies from several states. He is a licensed arbitrator and has attended more than 750 mediations in more than 30 different states. He has represented subrogated insurance carriers in every state, and has been admitted pro hac vice in 17 states. Gary Wickert has worked with the Texas Legislative Oversight Committee in rewriting their workers' compensation subrogation statutes, has served on the Board of the National Association of Subrogation Professionals, and has been cited as an authority on workers' compensation subrogation by several appellate courts, including the Texas Court of Appeals. He is one of only a few lawyers to have ever represented a subrogated carrier before the United States Supreme Court, and was named as one of Law & Politics magazine's "Super Lawyers" for 2005, 2006, and 2007.
