Empire Fire & Marine Insurance v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co.
Empire Fire & Marine Insurance v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co.
Opinion of the Court
This case arose from a motor vehicle collision that involved Troy Daniel and Chukwudi Chukwuma. Daniel, a passenger in a vehicle insured by Empire Fire & Marine Insurance Company, sued Chukwuma for damages as a result of the collision. Following a default judgment against Chukwuma, the trial court added State Farm Fire & Casualty Company, as a party defendant, as the insurer of the vehicle that Chukwuma operated.
The owner of the vehicle that Chukwuma drove admitted that for the sum of $50 per week, he rented the vehicle to Chukwuma.
Summary judgment is proper only when no genuine issue of material fact exists and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
Empire contends that State Farm is not entitled to summary judgment because the “rented to others” exclusion does not apply in this case. Because the plain language of the insurance contract states otherwise, we affirm.
The exclusion provides: “THERE IS NO COVERAGE: 1. WHILE ANY VEHICLE INSURED UNDER THIS SECTION IS: a. RENTED TO OTHERS OR USED TO CARRY PERSONS FOR A CHARGE.”
“Where the terms and conditions of an insurance contract are clear and unambiguous, they must be given their literal meaning.”
Because we hold that there was no coverage under the policy issued by State Farm, it follows that the trial court properly denied Empire’s motion for summary judgment as the uninsured motorist carrier.
Judgment affirmed.
OCGA § 9-11-56 (c).
Matjoulis v. Integon Gen. Ins. Corp., 226 Ga. App. 459 (1) (486 SE2d 684) (1997).
Adams v. Atlanta Cas. Co., 235 Ga. App. 288, 289 (1) (509 SE2d 66) (1998).
See Burnette v. Ga. Life &c. Ins. Co., 190 Ga. App. 485 (1) (379 SE2d 188) (1989).
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.