Stacked vs. Single-Limit UM/UIM Coverage in North Dakota

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

Stacking adds the uninsured and underinsured limits of several vehicles or policies together. North Dakota bars it by statute: the limit cannot be added to the limits for other vehicles, and with more than one policy you recover no more than the highest limit for any one vehicle under any one policy.

What stacking means

A household may have more than one vehicle or policy with UM and UIM. Stacking adds those limits after one injury, so $100,000 and $50,000 become $150,000. Single-limit coverage pays only the one limit that applies.

What North Dakota law says

N.D.C.C. 26.1-40-15.4(2) says that regardless of the number of vehicles involved, the number of persons covered or claims made, vehicles or premiums shown in the policy or premiums paid, the limit for UM or UIM may not be added to or stacked upon the limits for other vehicles to determine the coverage available to an insured in any one accident.

More than one policy

Subsection 3 says that if you are entitled to UM or UIM under more than one policy, the maximum you may recover may not exceed the highest limit provided for any one vehicle under any one policy. The order of priority is the policy on the vehicle you occupied, then a policy on a vehicle not involved under which you are a named insured, then one under which you are another insured. Lower-priority coverage applies only to the extent it exceeds a higher-priority policy.

A worked example

Suppose you have two policies with $100,000 and $50,000 of UIM, the at-fault driver paid $25,000, and your damages are $250,000. UIM pays the lower of your damages not yet recovered, $225,000, and the highest limit, $100,000, so up to $100,000, not $150,000. Try your own numbers in the North Dakota UM/UIM stacking calculator.

What to check

Look at the declarations page of each policy for the limit on each vehicle. See what section 26.1-40-15.4 says and how North Dakota UM and UIM work.

This is general information, not legal advice, and the state comparisons above are illustrative, not an exhaustive survey. Confirm how North Dakota's rules apply to your specific case with a licensed North Dakota attorney.