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Zubillaga v. Allstate Indemnity Company, 12 Cal.App.5th 1017 (2017)

Carmen Zubillaga sustained a back injury from a car accident. After settling with the other driver’s insurer, Zubillaga made a claim for underinsured motorist benefits to her auto insurer, Allstate Indemnity Company. Zubillaga demanded the remaining $35,000 policy limit to settle her UIM claim. Allstate rejected Zubillaga’s demand, and instead offered $10,000. Zubillaga later claimed that she had radiating back pain requiring epidural injections. Allstate increased its offer to $12,084 and retained an orthopedic surgeon to examine Zubillaga. The surgeon examined Zubillaga and concluded that she did not have radiating back pain and did not need epidural injections. Relying on the surgeon’s opinion, Allstate stood firm on its settlement offer.
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