Ainsworth v. State Farm Mut. Ins. Co

In Ainsworth v. State Farm Mut. Ins. Co., 284 N.J.Super. 117, 131-32, 663 A.2d 1365 (App.Div.1995), certif. denied, 143 N.J. 328, 670 A.2d 1068 (1996) the Court held that a UIM carrier cannot be required to arbitrate a potential UIM claim until "plaintiff's underlying action against the tortfeasor is finalized by an offer of settlement of the policy limits or a judgment exhausting the policy limits." Id. at 131, 663 A.2d 1365. The Court declined to require the UIM carrier "to participate in what may very well be meaningless arbitration." Id. at 132, 663 A.2d 1365.