Middle District Confirms That You Can Sue the Tortfeasor, Not Their Insurer

An injured plaintiff sued the alleged tortfeasor, the tortfeasor’s employer and the tortfeasor’s insurance carrier. The insurance carrier filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that a tort plaintiff does not have a direct cause of action against an alleged tortfeasor’s insurance carrier. 

The Middle District looked to Pennsylvania law and determined that it was “well-settled” that an injured party has no right to directly sue the insurer of an alleged tortfeasor. The only exceptions the Middle District recognized were if there was a statute or a provision in the insurance carrier’s policy permitting such a suit. 

The Middle District determined that neither of the exceptions to this “settled tenet of Pennsylvania law” applied to the claim at hand and granted the insurer’s motion to dismiss. The court made note that the plaintiff may continue to pursue her claims directly against the alleged tortfeasor and his employer.
 

_{Case Law Alerts, 4th Quarter, October 2023 is prepared by Marshall Dennehey to provide information on recent developments of interest to our readers. This publication is not intended to provide legal advice for a specific situation or to create an attorney-client relationship. Copyright © 2023 Marshall Dennehey, all rights reserved. This article may not be reprinted without the express written permission of our firm.}