Ansara v. State Farm Insurance
Ansara v. State Farm Insurance
Opinion of the Court
Plaintiff appeals from an order of the circuit court granting summary disposition in favor of defendant pursuant to MCR 2.116(C)(10) on plaintiff’s claim for first-party no-fault insurance benefits. We reverse.
According to plaintiff, he was injured when he was proceeding to reenter his vehicle after assisting his wife into the vehicle. Specifically, plaintiff states that he had entered his car, started it, and switched on the air conditioner. He then got out of the vehicle, leaving the driver’s side door open, and walked around the car to open the front passenger door and to assist his wife in securing their grandson in a child-restraint device. He also assisted his wife in entering the car and closing the passenger door. Plaintiff then walked around the rear of the car and, while approaching the driver’s side door to again enter the vehicle, he stepped upon a stone or other debris, resulting in a fracture of his ankle. Plaintiff states that he was approximately one foot away from the driver’s seat at the time of the injury, that he caught himself on the car and sat on the car seat after the injury.
On appeal, plaintiff argues that the trial court erred in concluding that there was no genuine issue of material fact that plaintiff was not entering into a motor vehicle at the time of his injury under MCL 500.3106(c); MSA 24.13106(c).
Reversed and remanded. We do not retain jurisdiction.
Section 3106 provides in pertinent part:
(1) Accidental bodily injury does not arise out of the ownership, operation, maintenance, or use of a parked vehicle as a motor vehicle unless any of the following occur:
*322 (c). . . the injury was sustained by a person while occupying, entering into, or alighting from the vehicle.
Dissenting Opinion
(dissenting). I respectfully dissent.
I believe that this case is closer factually to King v Aetna Casualty & Surety Co, 118 Mich App 648; 325 NW2d 528 (1982), than to Hunt v Citizens Ins Co, 183 Mich App 660; 455 NW2d 384 (1990). Accordingly, I would affirm the grant of summary disposition._
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Ansara v. State Farm Insurance Company
- Cited By
- 7 cases
- Status
- Published