Stacked vs. Single-Limit UM/UIM Coverage in Oregon

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

Stacking adds the uninsured and underinsured limits of several vehicles or policies together. The Oregon statutes we read do not mention stacking. They say your own UM coverage is primary while you occupy a vehicle owned by a named insured, and excess while you occupy another vehicle.

What stacking means

A household may have more than one vehicle or policy with UM. 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 Oregon law says

ORS 742.504(9) says that while you occupy a vehicle owned by a named insured under the coverage, that coverage is primary. While you occupy a vehicle not owned by a named insured, it applies only as excess over any primary insurance available to you that is similar, and only to the sums you are legally entitled to recover from an uninsured driver. It says nothing about adding limits across vehicles or policies.

What we did not read

We did not read Oregon court decisions on stacking, so we cannot say how courts treat several limits or several vehicles on one policy. Your policy wording and an attorney decide.

A worked example

Suppose you have two policies with $100,000 and $50,000 of UM, the at-fault driver's insurer paid its $25,000 limit, and your damages are $250,000. If only the first policy applies, UM pays up to $100,000. If both applied, it could pay up to $150,000. Try your own numbers in the Oregon UM/UIM stacking calculator.

What to check

Look at the declarations page of each policy and which vehicle you were in. See what the statutes say and leave open and how Oregon UM and underinsurance work.

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