Stearns v. Dairyland Insurance
Stearns v. Dairyland Insurance
Opinion of the Court
The plaintiff appeals from the grant of a motion for summary judgment against her in an action brought to recover damages for the death of her husband in an automobile accident. We affirm.
Plaintiff’s husband collided with a vehicle operated by a fifteen year old high school student who was residing with his mother. On the day before the accident, the student had traded a Volkswagen for a Pontiac Grand Am, which he was operating at the time of the accident. The owners exchanged possession of the vehicles and executed a handwritten bill of sale. In addition, the student received the Certificate of Title to the Pontiac with the Assignment and Warranty of Title by Registered Owner section of that form completed by the previous owner. The stu
The student was not insured under any policy of insurance of his own. His mother held a policy of auto insurance with defendant which extended coverage to members of her family residing in her household. This policy contained the following exclusions:
B. We do not provide Liability Coverage for the ownership, maintenance or use of: . . .
(3) Any vehicle, other than your covered auto, which is:
a. owned by any family member; or
b. furnished or available for the regular use of any family member
The Pontiac was not a covered vehicle as defined in the policy, and the defendant declined coverage, contending that it was owned by the student within the meaning of the exclusion. The sole question presented on appeal is whether the student owned the Pontiac at the time of the accident within the meaning of the “owned vehicle” exclusion in the mother’s policy.
Plaintiff contends that the student did not own the Pontiac because the parties involved in the car exchange failed to comply with the requirements of the Uniform Motor Vehicle Certificate of Title and Anti-Theft Act (Act), 23 V.S.A. §§ 2001-2095. The relevant section of that Act upon which the plaintiff relies is § 2023(d), which provides as follows:
Except as provided in section 2024 of this title and as between the parties, a transfer by an owner is not effective until the provisions of this section and section 2026 of this title have been complied with; however, an owner who has delivered possession of the vehicle of the transferee and has complied with the provisions of this section and section 2026 of this title requiring action by him is not liable as owner for any damages thereafter resulting from operation of the vehicle.
Plaintiff cites numerous cases from other jurisdictions holding that failure to strictly comply with statutes pertaining to the transfer of title precludes the transfer of ownership. In these cases, however, the certificates were either not properly completed, assigned, or forwarded to the commissioner or registrar of motor vehicles as mandated by the applicable statutes. We note in this connection that, while the title for the Act in Vermont is the “Uniform Motor Vehicle Certificate of Title and Anti-Theft Act,” it departs from the Uniform Act in one important aspect for the purposes of this case. In the transfer of interest section equivalent to § 2023, the Uniform Act requires that the transferee of the motor vehicle execute an application
Affirmed.
Section 14, which the Legislature did not adopt as part of 23 V.S.A. § 2023, provides in pertinent part:
the transferee shall, promptly after delivery to him of the vehicle, execute the application for a new certificate of title . . . and cause the certificate and application to be mailed or delivered to the Department [of Motor Vehicles].
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Donna Stearns v. Dairyland Insurance Company
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published