State guide · West
Washington subrogation law guide
The insured's own fault never bars recovery; it reduces damages in proportion to the insured's share. An insured 70% at fault still recovers 30% of its damages.
Washington at a glanceWA
- Property damage
- 3 years
- Bodily injury
- 3 years
- Fault rule
- Pure comparative
- Gov. notice
- None
Overview
Washington is a pure comparative fault state, which keeps mixed-liability files recoverable: an insured partly at fault still recovers the adverse party's share under RCW 4.22.005. Property damage and personal injury both run three years under RCW 4.16.080, and written contract claims run six years. The defining feature for subrogation units is how far Washington protects the insured inside the recovery. Thiringer makes the insured whole first, Daniels v. State Farm requires the full deductible to be returned before the carrier keeps a dollar, WAC 284-30-393 sets deductible, expense and status-update rules, and Mahler v. Szucs requires PIP carriers to share attorney fees. Liability is several only under RCW 4.22.070 unless the insured is fault-free, so allocation and nonparty fault matter. Claims against local governments go through the RCW 4.96.020 claim form and a 60-day waiting period that tolls the limitation period. The independent duty doctrine, applied in Affiliated FM v. LTK Consulting to a subrogated monorail fire claim, keeps negligence claims against engineers and contractors alive without privity. Washington rewards precise allocation and careful handling of the insured's share.
Quick reference with citations
- Property damage SOL
- 3 years
- RCW 4.16.080(1) (injury to real or personal property)
- Bodily injury SOL
- 3 years
- RCW 4.16.080(2)
- Product liability
- 3 years from when the claimant discovered, or should have discovered, the harm and its cause (RCW 7.72.060(3)). Claims are also limited by the product's useful safe life, with a rebuttable presumption that harm caused more than 12 years after delivery falls outside it (RCW 7.72.060(1) and (2)). Claims arising from construction of improvements to real property must accrue within 6 years after substantial completion (RCW 4.16.310).
- Written contract
- 6 years
- Contract and indemnity recoveries
- Comparative fault rule
- Pure comparative
- RCW 4.22.005
- Government notice of claim
- No general statutory pre-suit notice
- No separate notice deadline beyond the limitation period, but a claim must be presented before suit. Claims against local governments are filed on the standard tort claim form with the entity's designated agent, and suit cannot begin until 60 calendar days after presentment; the limitation period is tolled during those 60 days (RCW 4.96.020). Claims against the State follow a parallel claim-filing and 60-day waiting procedure with the Office of Risk Management (RCW 4.92.100 and 4.92.110). Substantial compliance with the content requirements is enough.
Fault rule in practice
How Washington's rule changes a $50,000 recovery.
The insured's own fault never bars recovery; it reduces damages in proportion to the insured's share. An insured 70% at fault still recovers 30% of its damages.
Authority: RCW 4.22.005
| Insured's share of fault | Recoverable in WA | Under pure comparative |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | $50,000 | $50,000 |
| 20% | $40,000 | $40,000 |
| 50% | $25,000 | $25,000 |
| 60% | $20,000 | $20,000 |
Doctrines that move the number
Washington doctrine checklist.
Made-whole doctrine
Washington is a strong made-whole state. Under Thiringer v. American Motors Insurance Co., the insurer recovers only the excess remaining after the insured is fully compensated, and Daniels v. State Farm applies the rule to the insured's deductible, which must be reimbursed in full before the insurer keeps any recovery, absent established comparative fault. Mahler v. Szucs, 135 Wn.2d 398, 957 P.2d 632 (1998) requires an insurer recovering PIP from the insured's settlement to pay a pro rata share of the attorney fees that produced it.
Economic loss doctrine
Washington uses the independent duty doctrine rather than a broad economic loss rule: an injury is remediable in tort if it traces to a breach of a tort duty arising independently of the contract (Eastwood v. Horse Harbor Foundation, Inc., 170 Wn.2d 380, 241 P.3d 1256 (2010)). Product claims for purely economic loss are routed to the UCC by the Washington Product Liability Act, RCW 7.72.
Joint and several liability
Liability is several only under RCW 4.22.070, with fault allocated to every entity that caused the damage except those immune under the workers' compensation act. Exceptions apply where parties acted in concert or as agent or servant, and where the claimant is found not at fault, the defendants against whom judgment is entered are jointly and severally liable for the sum of their shares.
Anti-subrogation and waiver
An insurer cannot subrogate against its own insured. Washington regulation also governs how a subrogating insurer treats its insured: WAC 284-30-393 requires the deductible to be included in the demand, gives the insured first claim on recoveries for the deductible less applicable comparative fault, and limits expense deductions. RCW 4.24.115 voids construction indemnity provisions for the indemnitee's sole negligence.
Practice notes
Working Washington subrogation files.
- 1
Do not close a Washington file because the insured shares fault. On a $40,000 collision payment where the insured is found 70% at fault, the recovery is still $12,000; at 30% it is $28,000. Pure comparative fault turns most mixed-liability intersections into partial recoveries. Score the expected percentage rather than a yes or no, and weigh recovery cost against the reduced dollars before filing.
- 2
Handle the deductible first. WAC 284-30-393 requires the deductible in every demand, gives the insured first claim on recoveries for the deductible less applicable comparative fault, bars expense deductions from the deductible share unless outside counsel was retained, and requires status contact within 60 days of starting subrogation and at least every 180 days after. Daniels v. State Farm makes a pro rata deductible refund on unproven fault a class action risk.
- 3
With several-only liability under RCW 4.22.070, a recovery against one defendant is capped at that defendant's percentage unless the insured is fault-free, in which case the defendants with judgments are jointly and severally liable for the sum of their shares. Fault can be allocated to nonparties other than employers immune under workers' compensation, so investigate every actor before the defense points to an absent one.
- 4
Before suing a city, county, utility district or school district, file the standard tort claim form with the entity's designated agent under RCW 4.96.020 and wait 60 calendar days; the limitation period is tolled for that window. Track the presentment date carefully, because a suit filed even one day early is premature. State agency claims follow the parallel RCW 4.92 procedure.
- 5
Construction and design recoveries survive privity problems under the independent duty doctrine, but the repose clock in RCW 4.16.310 requires the claim to accrue within six years after substantial completion. A failed fire sprinkler fitting in a nine-year-old building may be outside repose against the installer while still within the useful safe life analysis against the fitting's manufacturer under RCW 7.72.060.
- 6
Ishqkala scores Washington files on expected percentage rather than a liability threshold, so mixed-fault collisions stay in the queue with reduced recoverable dollars. Every Washington demand package it assembles carries the insured's deductible as a separate line, and the platform logs the 60-day and 180-day insured status contacts that WAC 284-30-393 requires as workflow tasks.
Key cases
Thiringer v. American Motors Insurance Co.
91 Wn.2d 215, 588 P.2d 191 (1978)
An insurer is reimbursed only from the excess the insured recovers after being fully compensated; a general settlement is applied first to the insured's general damages. The foundation of Washington's made-whole rule.
Daniels v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co.
193 Wn.2d 563, 444 P.3d 582 (2019)
An insurer must reimburse the insured's full deductible before keeping any of its own subrogation recovery, under the made-whole doctrine, WAC 284-30-393 and the policy, unless the insured's comparative fault is established. A partial recovery cannot be split pro rata against the deductible on unproven fault.
Affiliated FM Insurance Co. v. LTK Consulting Services, Inc.
170 Wn.2d 442, 243 P.3d 521 (2010)
A property insurer, as subrogee of the Seattle monorail's operator, could pursue a negligence claim against an engineering firm without contract privity, because engineers owe an independent duty of care to avoid physical damage to property. Washington's economic loss analysis does not shield service providers from subrogated property claims.
Inter-company arbitration
Arbitration Forums arbitrators apply Washington's pure comparative fault rule, so split decisions are common and still produce awards for the applicant. Because WAC 284-30-393 gives the insured first claim on recoveries for its deductible, include the deductible in the AF filing amount and allocate any partial award to the insured first unless the insured's comparative fault is established. Compulsory jurisdiction for signatories covers company-paid damages up to $100,000, and the three-year property period leaves time for a complete evidence package.
How Ishqkala applies this guide
WA rules, built into every score.
- Opportunities with a Washington loss state are calendared against the 3 years property damage period or the 3 years bodily injury period, whichever controls the claim type.
- The insured's estimated fault share is applied under pure comparative before recoverable dollars are scored.
- Public-entity claims are flagged for counsel review because notice and immunity rules vary by entity.
- Alerts fire at 180, 90, 45 and 15 days before the controlling deadline.
Other pure comparative jurisdictions
FAQ
Washington subrogation FAQ
3 years (RCW 4.16.080(1) (injury to real or personal property)). A subrogating carrier generally takes the insured's claim subject to the same limitation period, usually measured from the date of loss.
Pure comparative (RCW 4.22.005). The insured's own fault never bars recovery; it reduces damages in proportion to the insured's share. An insured 70% at fault still recovers 30% of its damages.
No separate notice deadline beyond the limitation period, but a claim must be presented before suit. Claims against local governments are filed on the standard tort claim form with the entity's designated agent, and suit cannot begin until 60 calendar days after presentment; the limitation period is tolled during those 60 days (RCW 4.96.020). Claims against the State follow a parallel claim-filing and 60-day waiting procedure with the Office of Risk Management (RCW 4.92.100 and 4.92.110). Substantial compliance with the content requirements is enough.
Washington is a strong made-whole state. Under Thiringer v. American Motors Insurance Co., the insurer recovers only the excess remaining after the insured is fully compensated, and Daniels v. State Farm applies the rule to the insured's deductible, which must be reimbursed in full before the insurer keeps any recovery, absent established comparative fault. Mahler v. Szucs, 135 Wn.2d 398, 957 P.2d 632 (1998) requires an insurer recovering PIP from the insured's settlement to pay a pro rata share of the attorney fees that produced it.
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