In a prior post, we discussed two appeals by Dr. Emerson Jou to the Hawai`i Intermediate Court of Appeals regarding notice requirements for reimbursement from no-fault policies. In a recent, third case pursued by Dr. Jou, the ICA agreed notice of denial of benefits was required pursuant to Haw. Rev. Stat. 431:10C-304 (3)(B) when reduced or partial payments were made. See Jou v. Schmidt, No. 27652 (Haw. Ct. App. June 4, 2008). Nevertheless, Dr. Jou was not entitled to payment from the insurer once the applicable policy limits were exhausted.
The ICA confirmed that once the insurer paid the full amount of the policy limits, its obligation to pay any additional outstanding bills due to the providers was extinguished. Here, the insurer's limit was $20,000. Although Jou appealed the conclusion of law that the insurer had no further responsibility for bills incurred by the insured, he did not appeal the finding that the policy limits were indeed exhausted. Therefore, the Circuit Court did not err in rejecting Dr. Jou's claim that he was entitled to additional payments from the insurer.
