Judge: Nationwide apparently not on plaintiff’s side

When Nationwide told customers in commercials it would be on their side it’s doubtful the insurer thought such marketing language would help a federal judge make a point and rule against the company for not living up to its promise. 

Doing just that was Tuesday’s ruling in Frank Slupski v. Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, in which a judge with the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia ruled that the insurer violated the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law when it denied an uninsured motorist claim filed by a man who was rear-ended.

“Plaintiff-Appellant Frank Slupski (‘Slupski’) sought underinsured motorist … coverage for an accident because he believed Defendant-Appellee Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company (‘Nationwide’) was on his side. Apparently not,” Judge Joseph Greenway wrote in the introduction of the ruling that reversed a district court decision that granted the company a summary judgment.

The case was remanded back to lower court.