Originally from:
Automobile Insurance Subrogation in All 50 States - Second Edition - Hardcover
Automobile Insurance Subrogation in All 50 States - Second Edition - Digital
Preview Page
§ 4.45[1] Subrogation Rights
Utah recognizes both equitable and contractual subrogation.1
Although generally governed by equitable principles, Utah holds fast
to the more logical ideology that equitable subrogation can be
modified by contract.2 This is because an insurer’s subrogation right
to recover from a responsible third party the amount it has paid to or
on behalf of its insured derives from the insurance contract between
the insurer and insured, and not from any contract or relationship
between the insurer and third party.3
Regardless of an express contract provision, an insurer may be
entitled to subrogation.4 This is because subrogation springs from the
equity concluding that one having been reimbursed for a specific loss
should not be entitled to a second reimbursement therefore. This
principle has been accepted in Utah with respect to property damage
and medical costs.5
An insurance company may enforce its subrogation and
reimbursement rights in Utah.6 A Utah statute provides that
subrogation actions may be brought by the insurer in the name of its
insured.7 Subrogation is permitted with respect to property damage
and medical costs, but a claim or cause of action for personal injuries
arising out of tort is not assignable.8
§ 4.45[2] Automobile Insurance Coverage
Every resident owner of a motor vehicle must maintain an owner’s
or operator’s insurance any time the vehicle is operated on a highway
or on a quasi-public road or parking area within the state.9 Also,
every non-resident owner of a motor vehicle that has a physical
presence in Utah for more than ninety (90) days during the preceding
365 days must also maintain such insurance.10
As of 2010, Utah has 1,463,366 licensed drivers and 5 to 10% of
them are uninsured.
Gary L. Wickert is an insurance trial lawyer and is regarded as one
of the world's leading experts on insurance subrogation. He is the
author of several subrogation books and legal treatises and is a
national and international speaker and lecturer on subrogation and
motivational topics. Mr. Wickert is also a politician in Wisconsin,
serving his fifth term as Town Supervisor in the Township of
Cedarburg. 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., he returned to his native Wisconsin in 1998 and
co-founded the firm of Matthiesen, Wickert & Lehrer, S.C. He
oversees a National Recovery Program which includes a network of
nearly 300 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 250 insurance
companies. Gary Wickert is also a commercial fiction author and his
latest political thriller, Dark Redemption (Tudor Publishing), is
available on www.Amazon.com.
Licensed in both Texas and Wisconsin, Mr. Wickert is double
board-certified in personal injury law and civil trial law by the Texas
Board of Legal Specialization. He is nationally certified as a Civil
Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA), for
whom he has written and graded product liability questions contained
on the NBTA national certification exam taken by trial lawyers
around the country. For over 25 years, he has served as an expert
witness 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 is one of only a
few lawyers to have ever represented a client before the United
States Supreme Court on a subrogation issue.
In 2002, Gary Wickert authored and published a treatise entitled
Workers' Compensation Subrogation In All 50 States (Juris
Publishing, Inc., New York), which is now in its Fifth Edition. You
can preview the treatise's contents and chapter summaries at
www.jurispub.com. It serves as the bible on workers' compensation
subrogation throughout the country and is the most thorough and
complete treatise on workers' compensation subrogation ever
published.
In 2005, Gary Wickert authored and published his second treatise
entitled ERISA and Health Insurance Subrogation In All 50 States,
(Juris Publishing, Inc., New York), which is now in its Fifth Edition.
You can preview its contents and chapter summaries at
www.jurispub.com. This treatise focuses on health insurance
subrogation in all 50 states and is in as much demand as the first
treatise.
In 2006, after years of receiving subrogation questions involving
livestock/vehicle collisions in all 50 states, Gary Wickert authored
and published his third treatise entitled Where's The Beef?
Subrogating Livestock/Vehicle Collisions In All 50 States, which is
now in its Second Edition. This treatise focuses on the laws
regarding liability of livestock owners in all 50 states and to date is
the most thorough treatment of this area of subrogation law ever
assembled. This treatise is available directly through Gary Wickert's
firm or his firm's website at www.mwl-law.com.
In 2008, Gary Wickert, with the help of his partners, Bradley W.
Matthiesen and Douglas W. Lehrer, authored and published his
fourth treatise entitled Fundamentals of Insurance Coverage In All
50 States, (Juris Publishing, Inc., New York), which is now in its
Fourth Edition. You can preview this treatise's contents and chapter
summaries at www.jurispub.com. This one-of-a-kind treatise covers
common issues and common rules to coverage triggers, equitable
relief, economic loss, property damage and a variety of policy
exclusions.
For information about Matthiesen, Wickert & Lehrer's National
Recovery Program, fees, list of clients, numerous subrogation links,
reported subrogation decisions, and published articles on the issue of
subrogation, visit his firm's website at www.mwl-law.com. Gary
Wickert can be reached at gwickert@mwl-law.com.
