The attorney representing the injured bicyclist, then demanded that GEICO settle with the bicyclist by paying him the $30,000 policy limit. GEICO refused and counter-offered $12,409. The attorney never responded to this offer.
Instead, the attorney for the bicyclist filed a lawsuit against the driver. The driver never notified GEICO of the suit, even though she had been advised to do so by the plaintiff’s law firm.
Instead, Winslett discarded the summons and complaint and failed to appear in court, which resulted in a default judgment against her in the amount of $2,916,204.
The Judgment
This judgment eventually forced Winslett into bankruptcy. The bankruptcy trustee then filed suit against GEICO in federal district court, accusing GEICO of negligently and/or in bad faith failure to settle the bicyclist’s claim, which resulted in a judgment against Winslett in excess of the policy limits.
As a result, the jury found Winslett 30 percent liable and GEICO 70 percent liable and entered a judgment of $2.7 million against GEICO.
