REI appeals Monika's case

Steve....REI is the petitioner. Period. Are you suggesting that REI was  required to file by their insurance policy carrier? ...to basically sign their name against their will? If REI failed to put its name on the dotted line, what would happen?

Certainly the board has obligations.  Members or bottom line (which becomes one and the same in thiis weird coop scenario).  But REI may end up in a pickle here.  How much does it lose if it blows off this insurer vs. how much business does it lose because if fails public trust.  No decisions other than bottom line, damn the members or public involved.

Do we really know the contractual terms that this insurer operates with REI?  Does REI have no freedom to act morally here?

If as you suggest, we should be lighting the fire under the carrier, then could you propose a way by which that is done?  Name the company and suggests ways that could be effective?

Is it impossible that a fairly potent corporation like REI not write into its contracts means by which it can avoid such a pickle.

Either way, the bucks go to REI and the buck has to stop at the top, just like the responsibility they should be held to for mistakes made by contractors.

If they made bad choices as to the insurance carriers they do business with, then so be it, they need to live by it.  Otherwise the suggestion is that there is no competition in the insurance business and we are all screwed.

Not much legal training other than bus law courses, but I think Big Steve is right:
REI probably has such a contract with the insurance co that any move to apologize / pay would be a breach.

Having said this, I still have the (maybe naive) idea that in some cases contracts can be breached to do the right thing.
Ivo

Steve....REI is the petitioner. Period. Are you suggesting that REI was  required to file by their insurance policy carrier? ...to basically sign their name against their will? If REI failed to put its name on the dotted line, what would happen?

Yes, almost all liability policies allocate to the insurance company the right and capacity to defend the lawsuit in REI's name.  Not sure what you mean by "sign the name" or "name on the dotted line," but if REI frustrated or interfered with the carrier's defense, it would likely forfeit coverage and that would put REI's board in the line of fire from the membership.  It's a Catch 22. 

If as you suggest, we should be lighting the fire under the carrier.  .  .  .

No, I’m not suggesting that.  I tried to make people aware that the insurance carrier, not REI, is the entity which has failed to compensate Monika or her estate, and that the law upon which the carrier relies was the product of intensive lobbying by the insurance companies (which was enabled by the industry's multi-million dollar blame the victim propaganda campaign).  If people are angry and want to do something to help future victims like Monika, they should direct their efforts to the legislators who time and again pass laws which favor the insurance industry and screw victims, stop buying into the industry’s propaganda and resist continued efforts to influence laws which will create more victims like Monika.  Blaming REI and ignoring the powerful insurance industry merely plays into the latter’s hands.

Steve....REI is the petitioner. Period. Are you suggesting that REI was  required to file by their insurance policy carrier? ...to basically sign their name against their will? If REI failed to put its name on the dotted line, what would happen?

IDK specifically about Monika's unfortunate case -- but I will say that in a personal injury case -- my wife was hit by a snowboarder -- that our medical insurance company persued the snowboarder to recover costs. They did this without asking us.

Fortunately for us, our medical insurance covered the bills for the ER visit and other care upfront. Other than providing a copy of the accident report we filed with the ski patrol we haven't been directly involved.

It sounds like Monika unfortunately didn't have medical and disablity insurance at the time of the accident ? If she had it it seems like it would be her insurance carriers that should be seeking a settlement from REI and the manufacturer instead of burdening her (and her estate) with this action.

So who is REI's insurance carrier?