Fisher v. Allstate Insurance

Is an underinsurance motorist carrier bound by the results of an arbitration between its insured and the tortfeasor when the carrier did not participate but had notice and an opportunity to intervene in the action? Yes.

The trial court entered partial summary judgment in favor of Kelly Fisher, the insured, holding Allstate Insurance Company, Fisher’s insurer, was bound by the arbitration award against the tortfeasor. The Court of Appeals affirmed, relying on Finney v. Farmers Ins. Co., 21 Wn. App. 601, 586 P.2d 519 (1978), aff’d, 92 Wn.2d 748, 600 P.2d 1272 (1979), holding an underinsured…