Alamo Rent a Car, Inc. v. Schulman

A multiple car collision has generated the question before us: where an injured claimant sues two of the drivers and one of their insurers becomes insolvent, will the claimant’s underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage necessarily become a primary source of compensation? We hold that so long as at least one liability insurer with an applicable policy remains solvent, the UIM coverage remains secondary.

These are the undisputed facts. Steven Schulman rented a car from Alamo Rent A Car, Inc., in Seattle early on the morning of July 10, 1990. As he drove south on Interstate 5, Schulman came up…