Blazekovic v. City of MilwaukeeBlazekovic v. City of Milwaukee
¶ 1. Petitioners American Standard Insurance Company (American Standard) and American Family Mutual Insurance Company (American Family) seek review of a published decision of the court of appeals that affirmed the circuit court order denying their motion for summary judgment.
1
The insurers contend that the exclusion contained in their insurance policies precludes uninsured motorist coverage for injuries sustained by Monica M. Blazekovic while employed as a firefighter and riding in a City of Milwaukee fire truck. Because we determine that the exclusion does not fit the narrow definition of a permissible "drive other car" exclusion under
¶ 2. The relevant facts are brief and undisputed. Monica M. Blazekovic, a City of Milwaukee firefighter, suffered injuries when the fire truck she was occupying was struck by an uninsured motor vehicle on August 25, 1995. At that time, Blazekovic had automobile insurance policies in effect on two vehicles. American
¶ 3. Both policies included uninsured motorist coverage as required by statute, with limits of $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident. Both policies also contained the following exclusion, identified as "Endorsement 44":
EXCLUSION OF NON-OWNED EMERGENCY TYPE AUTOMOBILE ENDORSEMENT
The insurance provided by this policy under Part I, Part II, Part III [Uninsured Motorists Coverage], Part IV, Part V оr Underinsured Motorists Coverage shall not apply to Blazekovic, Monica when using non-owned emergency type vehicles in connection with his or her employment, occupation, or profession.
Endorsement 44 is a particular breed of "drive other car" exclusion, which seeks to limit uninsured motorist coverage based on the car being driven.
¶ 4. Blazekovic initially filed suit against the uninsured motorist and the City of Milwaukee Fire Department, subsequеntly amending her complaint to include American Standard and American Family as named defendants. She sought uninsured motorist coverage for the injuries she sustained as a result of the accident. In response, the insurers filed for summary judgment and claimed that Endorsement 44 precludes coverage because Blazekovic was using a non-owned emergency vehicle in connection with her employment.
¶ 5. The circuit court denied summary judgment and determined that Endorsement 44 was an invalid exclusion. Accordingly, the court declared that the insurers' policies provided uninsured motorist coverage for Blazekovic's injuries.
¶ 7. The court of appeals affirmed, agreeing with the circuit court that Endorsement 44 is an invalid exclusion of uninsured motorist coverage. Observing that legislative changes in 1995 validated certain exclusions of uninsured motorist coverage that had been held invalid by prior case law, the court of appeals nevertheless concluded that Endorsement 44 remains a prohibited exclusion. Because
¶ 8. This case comes before the court on a review of a summary judgment motion. In reviewing motions for summary judgment, we follow the same methodology as does the circuit court.
Swatek v. County of Dane,
¶ 10. Before delving into statutory analysis, however, we briefly discuss the background of uninsured motorist insurance to provide context for our analysis. Uninsured motorist coverage in Wisconsin dates back to 1966 and was developed in response to the problems attendant to compensating victims of traffic accidents. Arnold P. Anderson,
Wisconsin Insurance Law
§3.1 (4th ed. 1998).
See also
Alan I. Widiss,
Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Insurance,
§§ 1.1 — 1.14., pp.3-19 (2d rev. ed. 1999). Wisconsin Stat.
¶ 11. The statute sets forth that such coverage is "[f]or the protection of persons injured who are legally entitled to recover damages from owners or operators of uninsured motor vehicles because of bodily injury, sickness or disease, including death resulting therefrom, in limits of at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident."
¶ 12. The issue before us is whether Endorsement 44 is a valid uninsured motorist exclusion. We begin our statutory interрretation with an examination of the language of
¶ 13. First, we must direct our focus to
¶ 14. In this case, the parties agree that Endorsement 44 does not fall under the enumerated exclusions prohibited under
¶ 15. Blazekovic directs our attention to
A policy may provide that any coverage under the policy does not apply to a loss resulting from the use of a motor vehicle that meets all of the following conditions:
1. Is owned by the named insured, or is owned by the named insured's spouse or a relative of the named insured if the spouse or relative resides in the same household as the named insured.
2. Is not described in the policy under which the claim is made.
3. Is not covered under the terms of the policy as a newly acquired or replacement motor vehicle.
(Emphasis supplied.)
¶ 16. Blazekovic posits that the statute is unambiguous and permits "drive other car" exclusions only when all three requirements are satisfied. Here, Blazekovic was using a vehicle owned by the City of Milwaukee. Thus, Endorsement 44 is prohibited because it fails tо satisfy the plain language of the first
¶ 17. American Family and American Standard agree that
¶ 18. The insurers further argue that all case law invalidating such exclusions as Endorsement 44 has been overturned by sweeping legislative changes in 1995 that rеinstated those exclusions. They rest their argument on language contained in
Clark
that notes the effect of these legislative changes in overruling prior case law.
¶ 19. Prior to 1995, a long line of cases held invalid uninsured motorist exclusions that served to prohibit the stacking of claims.
See, e.g., St. Paul Mercury Ins. Co. v. Zastrow,
¶ 20. In 1995, the legislature enacted
¶ 21. While
¶ 22. Wisconsin Stat.
¶ 23. American Standard and American Fаmily assert that because the legislature lifted the prior ban on anti-stacking and reducing clauses through
¶ 24. We do not dispute the permissive nature of the 1995 legislation. However, we hesitate to translate
¶ 25. In
Clark,
we noted that the 1995 legislation overturned all prior case law relating to exclusions of uninsured motorist coverage.
¶ 26. As the court of appeals astutely recognized, the "drive other car" exclusion in
Niemann
remains invalid.
Blazekovic,
¶ 27.
Niemann
has not been overruled by the 1995 statutory amendments, but merely limited for its reliance on the broad
Welch
rationale. The "drive other car" exclusion at issue in
Niemann
remains an invalid exclusion because, like Endorsement 44, it does not satisfy the first requirement listed under
¶ 28. American Family and American Standard disagree with the interpretation that
¶ 29. Legislative history confirms our interpretation. The Legislative Reference Bureau Analysis to 1995 Senate Bill 6, which was eventually enacted as the currеnt
The bill also validates certain drive-other-car exclusions, which courts have invalidated when used to prevent stacking. Under the bill, a policy may exclude coverage for losses resulting from the use of a vehicle that is not described in the policy and that is owned by the insured or a family member residing with the insured.
(Emphasis added.)
¶ 30. If we were to construe
¶ 31. American Family and American Standard also claim that our interpretation of
¶ 32. American Standard and American Family next contend that an invalidation of Endorsement 44 under
¶ 33. However, the cases offered by the insurers essentially address liability exclusions. They do not address uninsured motorist exclusions. Because
¶ 34. The insurers likewise fail to convince us that the uninsured motorist territorial exclusion in
Clark
would be invalidated as a result of our construction of
¶ 35. In
Clark,
upon completing the two-part test for determining the validity of the territorial exclusion
¶ 36. Apart from their statutory arguments, American Standard and American Family offer policy reasons for validating Endorsement 44. First, they assert that when an insurance contract is plain on its face, it must not be construed so as to bind the insurer to an unintended risk that it was unwilling to cover and for which payment was not made.
See Garriguenc v. Love,
¶ 37. We hasten to point out that in this case we are presented with an issue of statutory interpretation, not the construction of an insurance contract. The short response to the insurers' argument is that an insured may not receive less coverage than that mandatеd by the statute. An insurance contract that contravenes statutory requirements must be invalidated. Uninsured motorist coverage may not be whittled away in the absence of a clear legislative directive intending to restrict coverage, and we conclude that there is no such legislative directive.
¶ 39. Since the purposes underlying the two types of coverage differ, it is of little consequence that Blazekovic would receive more uninsured motorist coverage than liability coverage. There is no indicia that the legislature intended a convergence of liability and uninsured motorist coverage in light of the different goals underlying the two types of insurance.
¶ 40. American Standard and American Family also argue that our construction of
¶ 41. The uninsured motorist statute commands that uninsured motorist coverage be part and parcel of every automobile policy to guarantee that the victim of an uninsured driver's negligence is compensated to the same extent as if the driver were insured. The significant policy rationale underlying uninsured motorist coverage would be defeated by allowing for every exclusion except those specifically delineated under
¶ 42. In sum, we conclude that because Endorsement 44 fails to satisfy the statutory requirements of a permissiblе "drive other car" exclusion under Wis. Stat. 632.32(5)(j), it is prohibited under Wisconsin law. Therefore, American Standard and American Family may not deny Blazekovic uninsured motorist coverage for the injuries she sustained while operating a non-owned emergency vehicle during the course of her employment. Accordingly, we affirm the court of appeals.
By the Court. — The decision of the court of appeals is affirmed.
Notes
Blazekovic v. City of Milwaukee,
All future references to thе Wisconsin Statutes are to the 1997-98 volumes unless indicated otherwise.
The following are the enumerated prohibitions: 1) coverage exclusions for the agents and employees of motor vehicle handlers when the agents or employees are using motor vehicles used by customers doing business with the motor vehicle handler; 2) exclusions for persons related by blood or marriage to the insured; 3) exclusions for any named insured or passenger in an insured vehicle, with the exception of a motorcycle or moped designed to carry only one person; 4) exclusions based solely on age; and 5) exclusions for the use of the motor vehicle for illegal purposes or while the driver is under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
See
Wisconsin Stat.
(f) A policy may provide that regardless of the number of policies involved, vehicles involved, persons covered, claims made, vehicles or рremiums shown on the policy or premiums paid the limits for any coverage under the policy may not be added to the limits for similar coverage applying to other motor vehicles to determine the limit of insurance coverage available for bodily injury or death suffered by a person in any one accident.
(g) A policy may provide that the maximum amount of uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage available for bodily injury or death suffered by a person who was not using a motor vehicle at the time of an accident is the highest single limit of uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, whichever is applicable, for any motor vehicle with respect to which the person is insured.
(h) A policy may provide that the maximum amount of medical payments coverage available for bodily injury or death suffered by a person who was not using a motor vehicle at the time of an aсcident is the highest single limit of medical payments coverage for any motor vehicle with respect to which the person is insured.
(i) A policy may provide that the limits under the policy for uninsured or underinsured coverage for bodily injury or death resulting from any one accident shall he reduced by any of the following that apply:
1. Amounts paid by or on behalf of any person or organization that may be legally responsible for the bodily injury or death for which the payment is made.
2. Amounts paid or payable under any worker's compensation law.
3. Amounts paid or payable under any disability benefits laws.