LES VIOLINS AND THEOBALDO DE LAS CASAS, APPELLANTS,
v.
STATE FARM MUTUAL AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLEE

Fla. 3d DCA | 1972-04-18
No. 71-1067
Before BARKDULL, C. J., and CHARLES CARROLL and HENDRY, JJ.
260 So. 2d 559 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (1972)

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Synopsis

Appellants who were defendants in a negligence lawsuit brought by an insured sought recovery from the insured's auto insurance carrier for costs incurred when the carrier refused to defend them. The court affirmed the dismissal, holding that the insurance policy's exclusion for bodily injury to the insured precluded any duty to defend third-party defendants, and therefore those defendants had no claim against the insurer.


Holding

The court held that the insurance carrier had no duty to defend the third-party defendants because the policy exclusion for bodily injury to the insured applied to the lawsuit and rendered the damages sought by the insured non-recoverable under the policy. Therefore, the third-party defendants have no claim against the insurer for its refusal to defend.


Headnotes

[1] An automobile insurance policy exclusion for bodily injury to the insured or a member of the insured's household is valid under Florida law.

[2] An insurer has no duty to defend a lawsuit against a third party if the damages sought are not payable under the policy due to a valid exclusion.

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Key Quotes

“after the appellants [defendants in the original case] paid the judgment rendered therein they should not have any claim over against the injured party's insurance carrier”

Establishes the core holding that third-party defendants cannot recover from the insured's insurance carrier when the policy excludes coverage for the insured's own injuries

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Facts & Procedural History

On February 9, 1966, Diane Marie Ramy was injured near her automobile at the entrance to a restaurant owned by Les Violins, where the car was position…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

The appellants [plaintiffs in the trial court] appeal from an adverse final judgment denying them recovery against the appellee [defendant in the trial court]. The final judgment rendered by the trial judge reads in part as follows:

* * * * * *
“(a) On February 9, 1966 Diane Marie Ramy was the named insured under State Farm Mutual Automobile Policy No. 4483 785 B02 59 issued by the Defendant covering a 1965 two door Con-vair motor vehicle owned by Diane Marie Ramy, said policy being in full force and effect on such date.
“(b) On February 9, 1966 the said Diane Marie Ramy sustained bodily injuries by accident while proceeding to her automobile which was stopped in the street at the entrance to a restaurant owned and operated by the Plaintiff, Les Violins, where she had been a patron. The automobile was being used, having been brought to the entrance by the Plaintiff, Theobaldo De Las Casas.
“(c) As a result of the bodily injuries sustained by the said Diane Marie Ramy, a lawsuit was filed on her behalf against certain parties including the Plaintiffs herein, Les Violins and Theobaldo De Las Casas, said lawsuit being Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court Case No. 67-18965.
******
“(h) The policy of insurance issued by the Defendant herein to Diane Marie Ramy contained the following exclusion:
‘This insurance does not apply under:
******
(i) coverage A, to bodily injury to the insured or any member of the family of the insured residing in the same household as the insured;
******
“(i) Under the terms of the policy issued by the Defendant herein to Diane Marie Ramy bodily injuries are described as ‘coverage A’.
“(j) This exclusion is valid under Florida law and was applicable to the lawsuit brought by the said Diane Marie Ramy against the Plaintiffs herein, Les Violins and Theobaldo De Las Casas.
“(k) Under the terms of the policy issued by the Defendant herein to Diane Marie Ramy the duty of the Defendant was to defend any suit against the insured alleging such bodily injury and seeking damages payable under the policy.
“(i) The lawsuit brought by Diane Marie Ramy against the Plaintiffs herein sought damages for bodily injury to herself as the insured, as defined in the policy, within the meaning of this applicable exclusion and therefore the damages being sought by Diane Marie Ramy were not payable under the policy issued by the Defendant herein to the said Diane Marie Ramy. As a consequence there was no duty on the part of State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company to defend Les Violins and Theobaldo De Las Casas in the lawsuit brought against them by Diane Marie Ramy growing out of the accident of February 9, 1966, its refusal to do so was proper under the terms of the policy, and the Plaintiffs herein have no right to recover from State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company for its refusal to defend them in said case.”
******

*561It is apparent that the insured was injured; there was no obligation on the insurance company to defend her claim against the appellants and, therefore, after the appellants [defendants in the original case] paid the judgment rendered therein they should not have any claim over against the injured party’s insurance carrier. Reliance Mutual Life Assurance Company of Illinois v. Booher, Fla.App.1964, 166 So.2d 222; Zipperer v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, 5th Cir. 1958, 254 F.2d 853; Tenopir v. State Farm Mutual Co., 9th Cir. 1968, 403 F.2d 533; American Home Assurance Company v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, 1 Cal.App.3d 355, 81 Cal.Rptr. 732.

For the reasons stated in the final judgment here under review the same be and it is hereby affirmed.

Affirmed.


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