Unlike Whitaker, plaintiff here is a New Jersey resident who insures a vehicle in this state and another vehicle out-of-state and pays for what he calls the “zero or no tort option” on both policies. The question is whether the deemer statute still applies. In Whitaker, the plaintiff chose the “full tort” option under his Pennsylvania policy, but the Supreme Court nevertheless held that:
the Legislature expressly intended that the deemer statute, as amended, would impose the verbal threshold on all out-of-state insureds that sustain automobile accident injuries in New Jersey and whose policies were issued by insurers authorized to transact business in New Jersey. Id. at 356.
As Justice Stein further noted:
Because non-resident insureds do not contribute to the costs incurred by New Jersey insurers in defending full tort option claims, the Legislature obviously recognized that allowing non-residents the benefit of the full tort option for damages incurred in New Jersey accidents inevitably would increase the liability exposure of New Jersey insurers and generate pressure for increased premiums. Id. at 357.
