Rule 411 Liability Insurance

If someone has liability insurance, that fact usually can't be used in court to show they were careless or did something wrong. Juries might unfairly assume that a person with insurance is more likely to be at fault, or that a person without insurance is less likely to be at fault. So lawyers generally can't bring up insurance to argue about who caused an accident or injury.

However, this information can be used for other reasons. For example, if a witness works for an insurance company, that fact can be brought up to show the witness might be biased. Insurance can also come up if there's a dispute about who owns something, who controls it, or who someone's employer or agent is.

There's one more exception. If a party in the case brings up their own financial situation, such as claiming they're too poor to pay damages, then evidence about their insurance can be used to respond to that claim.