JUSTO MAYO, APPELLANT,
v.
CAPITAL ASSURANCE COMPANY, INC., APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Affirmed directed verdict for uninsured motorist carrier where phantom vehicle caused no causal negligence and the at-fault parked truck owner was fully insured, making UM coverage unavailable.
An uninsured motorist carrier is not liable when the phantom vehicle committed no causal negligence and the actual at-fault party was fully insured.
[1] An uninsured motorist carrier standing in the shoes of a phantom vehicle is not liable when the phantom vehicle committed no causal negligence in the accident.
[2] Uninsured motorist coverage is unavailable when the actual at-fault party is fully insured for the judgment amount, eliminating any cognizable harm.
Previewing 2 of 2 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligencePlaintiff crashed into an unlawfully parked truck after a phantom vehicle swerved to avoid it. The jury found the truck owner 100% responsible for the…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Causal Negligence cases and more on FLexlaw
SCHWARTZ, Chief Judge.
The judgment under review is affirmed for two reasons. First, there was no substantive error in directing a verdict in favor of the appellee uninsured motorist carrier, standing in the shoes of the driver of a “phantom” vehicle who successfully swerved in time to avoid an unlawfully parked truck, into which the plaintiff appellant subsequently crashed. Simply stated, there was no evidence that the phantom was guilty of any causal negligence whatever. See Jefferies v. Amery Leasing, Inc., 698 So. 2d 368 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997); Tozier v. Jarvis, 469 So. 2d 884 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985). Compare McCloud v. Swanson, 681 So. 2d 898 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996)(jury issue presented on liability of forward driver to following driver only because preceding driver actually struck rear vehicle).
Second, even if the contrary were true, there was no cognizable harm because the owner of the forward truck, who was held 100% responsible for the accident by the jury, was fully insured for the amount of the verdict. Thus, UM coverage was unavailable and the insurer not liable in any event. See Bruno v. Travelers Ins. Co., 386 So. 2d 251 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980); Dickey v. Grange Mut. Cas. Co., 370 So. 2d 1234 (Fla. 2d DCA 1979); see also Allstate Ins. Co. v. Silow, 714 So. 2d 647 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998); State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Marko, 695 So. 2d 874 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997).
Affirmed.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Lenon Diaz-Hernandez v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 19 So. 3d 996 (Fla. 3d DCA 2009)…he shoes of the uninsured motorist. See State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Revuelta, 901 So. 2d 377, 380 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005) (explaining that uninsured motorist carrier “stand[s] in the shoes of the uninsured motorist”); Mayo v. Capital Assurance Co., 845 So. 2d 275, 276 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003) (explaining that uninsured motorist carrier stood in the shoes of the driver of a “phantom” vehicle). Therefore, at that point, the UM carrier is adverse to its own insured. See State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Laforet, 658…
Authorities Cited
- Gertrude Tozier v. Jarvis, 469 So. 2d 884 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985)
- State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Marko, 695 So. 2d 874 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997)
- Jefferies v. Amery Leasing, Inc., 698 So. 2d 368 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997)
- McCLOUD v. Swanson, 681 So. 2d 898 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996)
- Allstate Ins. Co. v. Silow, 714 So. 2d 647 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998)
- Bruno v. Travelers Ins. Co., 386 So. 2d 251 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980)
- Dickey v. Grange Mut. Cas. Co., 370 So. 2d 1234 (Fla. 2d DCA 1979)