A case that pitted a Bend, Oregon couple against Allstate Insurance over a mistakenly high settlement offer culminates with the insurer’s error deemed non-binding by federal court.
Court Rejects Allstate’s $1M Error
The legal saga unfolded when Debra and Kevin Kilroy thought fortune had smiled on them, misled by a typo-infested settlement letter from Allstate which followed Debra’s traumatic encounter with an off-leash dog in 2020.
A Painful Mishap with Life-Altering Consequences
Debra, while walking on a local trail, suffered multiple fractures after being injured by the Great Pyrenees. The couple was under the impression that Allstate had offered a generous settlement of $1.3 million, based on a misprint which listed the figure as “$1300,000.”
Typographical Error Triggers Dispute
In reality, the insurer intended to propose $300,000 – the cap limit under the dog owner’s homeowner’s insurance policy. The error spurred a legal battle anchored on whether an additional million-dollar umbrella policy applied to the claim, which, as reported by Oregon Live, was later confirmed nonexistent by both parties.
Reasonable Doubt Leads to Ruling
US District Judge Michael J McShane dismissed the notion of upholding the erroneous settlement, observing that reasonable people would find the million-dollar offer too good to be true.
The Kilroys’ lawyer, Emmanuel B Miller, asserted that the insurance company acknowledged that the dog owner was covered by a $1 million umbrella policy, along with a $300,000 homeowners policy, thus making the settlement offer a sum of these two amounts. Contrarily, the insurer clarified that the dog owner was insured under a single policy worth $300,000 only and that was the maximum amount proposed for the settlement
Ongoing Litigation for the Kilroys
The Kilroy’s subsequent lawsuit in Deschutes County Circuit Court accuses the dog owner of negligence, with Kilroy’s lasting injuries at the center of their claim for over $1.5 million in non-economic damages, alongside substantial medical costs. The plaintiff states that she sustained severe injuries including ankle and knee fractures, along with nerve damage. The suit estimates her past medical and related expenses to be $78,652.08 and anticipates further costs of around $500,000 for future care. The lawsuit is also seeking in excess of $1.5 million for non-economic damages.
The defendant in the case, confessed to walking his dog close to the plaintiff, at the time of the incident. According to court documents, the dog suddenly charged towards Kilroy and another nearby dog. While the dog owner did not witness the dog knocking into Kilroy, he discovered her on the ground in the aftermath.
