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Automobile Insurance Subrogation: In All 50 States - Hardcover
Automobile Insurance Subrogation: In All 50 States - Electronic
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§ 4.43 TENNESSEE
§ 4.43[1] Subrogation Rights
Tennessee recognizes the equitable and contractual rights of
subrogation.1 Tennessee does not recognize a difference between
equitable and contractual subrogation.2 Equitable subrogation is not
dependent on, governed by, nor modified by the terms of an
underlying contract.3 Therefore, a health Plan may subrogate even
without subrogation language contained within the Plan.4
There is some authority to the effect that if a subrogated insurer or
Plan has knowledge of a third-party lawsuit and/or settlement
negotiations with a tortfeasor, and does not intervene or warn the
insured/beneficiary about its subrogation interests, they may be
waived.5
§ 4.43[2] Automobile Insurance Coverage
Every vehicle registered in Tennessee must have an insurance
policy or security bond covering it and securing against liability in at
least the minimum limits required by statute.6
Liability Insurance Coverage. Every policy must provide liability
insurance coverage with the following minimum limits:
• For policies issued after December 31, 1986 but before
January 1, 2009, there must be single-limit coverage of not
less than $60,000, including $25,000 for bodily injury to or
death of one (1) person, not less than $50,000 for two (2)
or more persons, and $10,000 for damage to the property
of others in any one (1) accident.
• For policies issued after December 31, 2008, there must be
single-limit coverage of not less than $60,000 applicable to
any one (1) accident, not less than $25,000 for bodily
injury or death of one (1) person, $50,000 for two (2) or
more persons in any one accident, and $15,000 for damage
to the property of others in any one (1) accident.7
As of 2010, Tennessee has 4,251,228 licensed drivers and 16 to
25% of them are uninsured.8
Uninsured/Underinsured (UM/UIM) Coverage. Carriers must
offer UM/UIM coverage with limits equal to that of the policy’s
bodily injury liability coverage limits.9 The insured may reject this
coverage in writing or select lower limits of coverage, provided that
the limits selected are not below the statutory minimum liability
limits set forth in § 55-12-107.10 An "uninsured motor vehicle" is
defined to include any vehicle whose ownership, maintenance, or use
has resulted in the bodily injury, death, or damage to property of an
insured, and for which the sum of the limits of liability insurance
available to the insured is less than the applicable limits of UM
coverage provided to the insured under the policy.11
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.
