Donovan v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co.
Donovan v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co.
Opinion of the Court
This case raises two related questions under Pennsylvania's Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law (MVFRL). The first involves the right to aggregate or "stack" the limits of coverage for underinsured (UIM) benefits between two separate policies of insurance, commonly referred *547to as "inter-policy" stacking. The second is whether a commonly used exclusion to prevent the stacking of benefits by combing the limits of separate policies, commonly referred to as the "household exclusion," remains viable following the Pennsylvania Supreme Court's decision in Gallagher v. GEICO Indem. Co. , --- Pa. ----,
The defendant carrier concedes that inter-policy stacking of UIM benefits is permissible under Pennsylvania law but contends that its insureds waived such stacking when the policies were purchased. I agree that inter-policy stacking can be waived, but further conclude as a matter of law that no waiver was effectuated in this case as to the policy through which coverage is sought. With respect to the enforceability of the household exclusion, the broad language of the Supreme Court in Gallagher favors a conclusion that such provisions are per se unenforceable. But even if Gallagher were to be limited to cases where a policy provides for stacked coverage, as urged by the defense, the household exclusion is still unenforceable in this case, because inter-policy stacking was not validly waived. Consequently, I will grant Plaintiffs' Motion for Summary Judgment and deny Defendant's Cross-Motion.
I. Pertinent Facts
In July 2015, Plaintiff Corey Donovan was involved in an accident while riding his motorcycle. The motorist who struck Plaintiff maintained insurance coverage, and the carrier tendered the full liability limit of $25,000 available under the motorist's policy. Plaintiff then filed a claim for underinsured motorist (UIM) benefits under the motorcycle policy he held with Defendant State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company. The policy, which he had purchased in April 2015, provided UIM coverage up to $50,000 per person. State Farm tendered the full limit available under the policy.
Corey Donovan resides with his mother, Plaintiff Linda Donovan, who maintains a Personal Automobile Policy with State Farm. Her policy extends UIM coverage to "resident relatives," defined as a relative who resides primarily with the named insured. After the motorcycle accident, Mr. Donovan filed a claim for UIM benefits under his mother's policy, which provides for UIM benefits of up to $100,000 per individual.
State Farm denied this claim, stating that Ms. Donovan's policy did not allow for additional coverage of Mr. Donovan. Defendant State Farm's automobile policy sets forth different coverage terms for UIM benefits depending on whether the insured selected stacked or unstacked UIM coverage. Under Pennsylvania's Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law (MVFRL), a motorist with stacked coverage is entitled to UIM benefits equal to the aggregate amount of liability limits applicable to each vehicle for which the individual is insured. See
Ms. Donovan's policy covered three vehicles, but in 2012, she signed a waiver declining *548stacked UIM benefits under her automobile policy. Pls.' Compl. Ex. D, ECF No. 1-6. It stated:
By signing this waiver, I am rejecting stacked limits of underinsured motorist coverage under the policy for myself and members of my household under which the limits of coverage available would be the sum of limits for each motor vehicle insured under the policy. Instead, the limits of coverage that I am purchasing shall be reduced to the limits stated in the policy. I knowingly and voluntarily reject stacked limits of coverage. I understand my premiums will be reduced if I reject this coverage.
The policy differentiates stacked versus unstacked coverage by the codes Coverage W and Coverage W3, respectively. For W3 unstacked coverage, the policy sets forth an exclusion which provides: "THERE IS NO COVERAGE FOR AN INSURED WHO SUSTAINS BODILY INJURY WHILE OCCUPYING A MOTOR VEHICLE OWNED BY YOU OR ANY RESIDENT RELATIVE IF IT IS NOT YOUR CAR OR A NEWLY ACQUIRED CAR ." Def.'s Mot. Summ. J. Ex. 2, at 37, ECF No. 16-6.
In denying Plaintiff Corey Donovan's claim, State Farm offered the following explanation in a June 22, 2016 letter:
We see no coverage opportunities for Corey under the auto policy of Linda Donovan. With Corey having non stacking underinsured coverage on the vehicle involved in the accident. [sic ] And with Linda Donovan having non-stacking underinsured coverage on her auto policy of insurance, it is our position that the only source of underinsured coverage for Corey is his motorcycle policy with a $50,000 per person limit.
Pls.' Compl. Ex. C, ECF No. 1-5.
After receiving this denial letter, Plaintiffs filed this action seeking declaratory relief. In Count I, Plaintiffs request an order declaring that Corey Donovan may, at a minimum, recover up to $50,000 in additional UIM benefits under the literal terms of his mother's policy. Pls.' Compl. at 7, ECF No. 1-1. In Count II, Plaintiffs seek an order declaring that Corey Donovan may recover up to $100,000 in additional UIM benefits under his mother's policy, on the ground that Ms. Donovan waived only intra-policy stacking but did not waive inter -policy stacking.
The parties have agreed to proceed on a stipulated record by filing cross-motions for summary judgment.
*549II. Controlling Standard
This Motion is governed by the well-established standard for summary judgment set forth in Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a), as amplified by Celotex Corporation v. Catrett ,
III. Discussion
A. The Waiver signed by Ms. Donovan does not suffice to waive inter-policy stacking.
There is little direct authority on the intricacies of inter-policy stacking under Pennsylvania law. The most instructive precedent for purposes of this case is the Supreme Court's decision in Craley v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. ,
The Court then turned to an anomaly in the statute with respect to inter-policy stacking-the fact that the language prescribed by § 1738(d) to accomplish a waiver of stacked benefits does not on its face "clearly address an inter-policy stacking waiver."
By signing this waiver, I am rejecting stacked limits of uninsured motorist coverage under the policy for myself and members of my household under which the limits of coverage available would be the sum of limits for each motor vehicle insured under the policy. Instead, the limits of coverage that I am purchasing shall be reduced to the limits stated in the policy. I knowingly and voluntarily reject stacked limits of coverage. I understand that my premiums will be reduced if I reject this coverage.
Finding the waiver insufficient on its face, the Court determined that it was necessary to consider other "circumstances" to determine whether the insured had made a "knowing" waiver of inter-policy stacking.
In reaching this result, the Court further observed that its reasoning would not be valid in a case such as this one, where the policy under which stacked coverage was sought insured more than one vehicle. That is so because under such circumstances the language of the waiver would literally apply to a rejection of stacked coverage within the policy, and the premium reduction being acknowledged by the insured could be assumed to stem from waiver of intra-policy stacking.
Craley remains the controlling case, as no further decision sheds light on the issue before me, nor has the legislature acted in response to the Court's invitation.
State Farm argues that Craley did not invalidate the waiver language or "impose any requirement on insurers to employ different language." Def.'s Mot. Summ. J. at 4, ECF No, 16-8. That may literally be true, but State Farm ignores the Court's broader holding that an insured must be given "full information" about the availability of stacked coverage and minimizes its conclusion that a waiver that refers only to a single policy form does not "clearly address" inter-policy stacking. Craley ,
Ultimately, however, the fatal weakness in State Farm's position is that seeks to avoid the infirmities in Linda Donovan's waiver by relying on Corey Donovan's waiver of stacked benefits under his policy, Def.'s Mot. Summ. J. at 4, ECF No, 16-8, which is not relevant under Craley .
As to his mother's policy, State Farm cannot rely upon Linda Donovan's waiver of intra-policy stacking because her policy covered multiple vehicles. Craley instructs that in such cases a waiver that refers only to the "policy" cannot be assumed to waive inter-policy stacking. Craley makes clear that the premium reduction Ms. Donovan acknowledged in waiving stacking correlates with a waiver of intra-policy stacking. Yet in propounding the stipulated record in this case, State Farm has not attempted to demonstrate any additional saving attributable to her purported waiver of inter-policy stacking. State Farm has not provided any basis for the conclusion that Ms. Donovan's waiver applied to inter-policy as well as intra-policy stacking.
Nor has State Farm offered any justification or excuse for the defect in the waiver. Craley recognized that responsibility for the inadequacy of the statutory waiver language falls on the legislature in the first instance,
Moreover, to the extent that State Farm might be reluctant to deviate from the statutory language, it had recourse under the Pennsylvania Code to seek guidance from the Insurance Commissioner under Chapter 35 of the Pennsylvania Code, which authorizes petitions for "issuance, amendment, waiver, or deletion of regulations,"
B. The "Household Exclusion" does not defeat Plaintiffs' Entitlement to Stacked Limits.
On the face of the Linda Donovan's policy, her son Corey is entitled to underinsured motorist benefits as a "resident *552relative," but that coverage is then taken away by an exclusion:
Exclusions - Coverage W3
THERE IS NO COVERAGE FOR AN INSURED WHO SUSTAINS BODILY INJURY WHILE OCCUPYING A MOTOR VEHICLE OWNED BY YOU OR ANY RESIDENT RELATIVE IF IT IS NOT YOUR CAR OR A NEWLY ACQUIRED CAR .
Def.'s Mot. Summ. J. Ex. 2, at 37, ECF No. 16-6. The Auto Policy also sets forth a specific definition for the term "CAR ," stating: "Car means a land motor vehicle with four or more wheels, designed for use primarily on public roads." Def.'s Mot. Summ. J. Ex. 2, at 15, ECF No. 16-5. Under this provision, commonly known as the "household exclusion," Corey Donovan would be ineligible to receive underinsured benefits for injury sustained while operating his motorcycle.
While this case was pending, however, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania issued a major decision that fundamentally altered the law of automobile insurance. In Gallagher v. GEICO Indemnity Co. , --- Pa. ----,
In reply, State Farm points out that the Plaintiff in Gallagher elected stacked coverage when the policy was issued, and argues that Gallagher should be limited to its facts. As an initial matter, I note that the Supreme Court explicitly abrogated two of the decisions upon which State Farm has relied to this point: Gov't Emps. Ins. Co. v. Ayers ,
More importantly, the factual basis on which State Farm seeks to distinguish Gallagher would not apply in any event. Although Corey Donovan explicitly waived stacking, and Linda Donovan waived intra-policy stacking, the terms of Mr. Donovan's policy are irrelevant under Craley , and I have concluded that that Ms. Donovan did not knowingly waive inter-policy stacking. Gallagher controls this case, and therefore State Farm cannot rely upon the household exclusion to deny underinsured coverage.
C. Because Ms. Donovan did not waive inter-policy stacking, the coordination of coverage provision limiting benefits does not apply.
State Farm argues that, even if stacked coverage is available to Corey Donovan under his mother's policy, the amount recoverable is $50,000 rather than $100,000, by virtue of the following provision in the policy:
If Other Underinsured Motor Vehicle Coverage Applies - Coverage W3
1. If Underinsured Motor Vehicle Coverage provided by this policy and one or more other vehicle policies issued to you or any resident rela *553tive by one or more of the State Farm Companies apply to the same bodily injury , then:
a. the Underinsured Motor Vehicle Coverage limits of such policies will not be added together to determine the most that may be paid; and
b. the maximum amount that may be paid from all such policies combined is the single highest applicable limit provided by any one of the policies. We may choose one or more policies from which to make payment.
Def.'s Mot. Summ. J. Ex. 2, at 38, ECF No. 16-6. State Farm goes on to observe that, under Pennsylvania law, courts must give plain meaning to clear and unambiguous contract provisions unless to do so would be contrary to a clearly expressed public policy. See Antanovich v. Allstate Ins. Co. ,
The policy provides two forms of underinsured motor vehicle coverage, designated "W" and "W3." The policy describes Coverage W as the "Stacking Option" and Coverage W3 as the "Non-Stacking Option." Def.'s Mot. Summ. J. Ex. 2, at 34, ECF No. 16-6. The policy states that Coverage W applies to vehicles marked with a "W" on the Declarations Page, and that Coverage W3 applies to vehicles marked "W3." See
The consequence of a carrier's failing to secure a valid waiver of stacking is that the policy defaults to stacked coverage by operation of law. Gallagher ,
IV. Conclusion
For the reasons set forth above, Plaintiffs' Motion for Summary Judgment will be granted, and Defendant's cross-motion denied. An order will be entered declaring that Corey Donovan is eligible for additional underinsured motorist benefits in an amount up to $100,000 under Linda Donovan's policy with State Farm.
The severity of Mr. Donovan's injuries is not disputed, as he suffered an arm injury requiring multiple surgeries, and has permanent deformities of the arm and limitations of its use.
Corey Donovan also rejected stacked limits for his motorcycle policy, but, as discussed below, the waiver accompanying his policy is irrelevant because he is seeking benefits under his mother's policy.
With respect to these exhibits, the Court has adopted the pagination employed by the parties and indicated in the upper right-hand corner of each page.
Although the parties did not request that I defer ruling until Gallagher was decided, because this case involves the Declaratory Judgment Act,
Craley followed a torturous path in getting to the Supreme Court, and I endorse the observation of the Pennsylvania Superior Court that "cases addressing the interplay of the household vehicle exclusion and inter- and intra-policy stacking and what can and cannot be waived are far from models of logic and clarity." State Farm Fire & Casualty v. Craley ,
"Accordingly, the Craleys sought uninsured motorist benefits under Randall Craley's motor vehicle insurance policy.... It is Randall's policy and its exclusions that are relevant to the legal issues presented in this case." Craley ,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Corey DONOVAN and Linda Donovan v. STATE FARM MUTUAL AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY
- Cited By
- 10 cases
- Status
- Published