HOWARD LEON JOHNSON, APPELLANT,
v.
AUTO-OWNERS INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLEE

Fla. 1st DCA | 1974-02-14
No. T-366
RAWLS, C. J., and SMITH, LARRY G., Associate Judge, concur.
289 So. 2d 748 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (1974) Caution
Cited by 16 cases

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.

Synopsis

An insured sought recovery under an uninsured motorist provision after being injured on a motorcycle he owned but which was not described in his insurance policy. The court reversed summary judgment for the insurer, holding that exclusionary clauses denying uninsured motorist coverage for vehicles owned but not described in the policy violate public policy under both Florida and Alabama law.


Holding

The exclusionary clause is void as contrary to public policy. An insured is entitled to uninsured motorist coverage regardless of whether the vehicle in which he is injured is the specific vehicle described in the policy, as long as it is owned by the insured. The mode of transportation is not a factor in determining coverage eligibility.


Headnotes

[1] An insurer may not exclude uninsured motorist coverage for an insured injured while operating a vehicle owned by the insured but not described in the policy.

[2] The law of the state where an accident occurred and where the insured has significant contacts will apply to the interpretation of an insurance policy's exclusionary clau…

Previewing 2 of 5 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Key Quotes

“the insured would be covered by uninsured motorist liability protection 'whenever he is injured while walking, or while riding in motor vehicles, or in public conveyances, including uninsured motor vehicles (including Honda motorcycles) owned by a member of the first class of insureds.'”

Establishes that uninsured motorist coverage applies regardless of the type of vehicle owned by the insured, including motorcycles.

Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Facts & Procedural History

Johnson purchased an auto insurance policy in August 1972 listing only a 1962 Pontiac, with an endorsement excluding uninsured motorist coverage for a…

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.


Opinion of the Court
JOHNSON, Judge.

JOHNSON, Judge.

Appellant herein seeks reversal of a summary judgment entered in favor of appellee in .a suit in which appellant sought to recover under the uninsured motorist provision of a policy issued to appellant by appellee.

The only question for our determination is whether an insurer can exclude uninsured motorist coverage when the insured is involved in an accident with an uninsured motorist while operating a vehicle owned by the insured, but not described in the policy of insurance. By its final summary judgment, the lower court held that the exclusion clause in question, which provided that there is no uninsured motorist coverage when the insured is riding in a vehicle owned by him but not described in the declarations attached to the policy, was a valid exclusionary clause in Alabama. We reverse.

The facts of this case are not in dispute. In August of 1972, appellant purchased an automobile liability insurance policy issued by appellee from an agency in Alabama. The only vehicle described in the policy was a 1962 Pontiac. Appellant paid for uninsured motorist protection, but attached to the policy was an endorsement which provided in pertinent part as follows:

“In consideration of the premium at which this policy is written, it is agreed that Coverage D-Uninsured Motorist shall not apply to any bodily injury to an insured sustained while in, upon, enter-not described in the Declarations at-ing or alighting from any motor vehicle tached to this policy and that is owned by the named insured ...”

On September 7, 1972, appellant purchased a motorcycle in Pensacola, Florida. On the same date, he was injured in an accident in Escambia County, Florida, said accident being caused by the negligence of an uninsured motorist. Appellant then filed suit against appellee seeking to recover under the uninsured motorist provision of the policy. The appellee moved for summary judgment on the ground that appellant was not entitled to recover because he was, at the time of the accident, upon an owned motor vehicle that was not described in the declaration page of the policy. The appellant contended that the exclusionary clause of the policy was void as being contrary to the public policy of both the State of Florida and the State of Alabama.

The trial court determined that the laws of the State of Alabama would apply in regard to whether the exclusionary clause was valid and then determined that the Alabama courts would uphold the exclusion clause and would not permit recovery by the insured against the insurer. Appellee’s motion for summary judgment was granted and this appeal results.

First, we feel that the trial court erred in holding that the law of the State of Alabama would apply as to the validity of the exclusionary clause in question. Even though the policy was issued by an Alabama insurance agency, we note that the address listed for appellant on the application form is “Route 1, Century, Es-cambia, Florida 32535 (In Alabama),” and that said application form also lists Pensacola, Florida, as the location of appellant’s employer. The policy itself lists appellant’s address to be “Route 1, Century, Florida 32535.” It is also to be noted that the appellee was authorized to do business in Florida and that the accident itself occurred in Florida. With these facts in mind, and especially the fact that this was an automobile insurance policy and appel-lee had knowledge that appellant travelled and worked in Pensacola, Florida, we find that Florida had ample contacts with the insured to apply the law of Florida. See Clay v. Sun Insurance Company, 377 U.S. 179, 84 S.Ct. 1197, 12 L.Ed.2d 229 (1964).

We hasten to point out, however, that it is our conclusion that the exclusionary clause in this instance is void as being against public policy, whether the law applied is that of Florida or Alabama.

In Florida, the law is clear as to uninsured motorist coverage exclusionary clauses relating to vehicles owned by the insured. In Mullis v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., 252 So. 2d 229 (Fla. 1971), the Florida Supreme Court held an exclusion clause similar to the one now under consideration to be contrary to the uninsured motorist statute. That Court recognized the public policy of this State to be that every insured is entitled to recover for the damages he or she would have been able to recover if the offending motorist had maintained a policy of liability insurance. Just as the age of the innocent party is not a factor in the cause of the injury, First National Insurance Company v. Devine, 211 So. 2d 587 (Fla.App. 2nd, 1968), neither is the innocent party’s mode of transportation a factor.

In conclusion, the Mullis decision, supra, held that the insured would be covered by uninsured motorist liability protection

“whenever he is injured while walking, or while riding in motor vehicles, or in public conveyances, including uninsured motor vehicles (including Honda motorcycles) owned by a member of the first class of insureds. Neither can an insured family member be excluded from such protection because of age, sex, or color of hair. . . . [The uninsured motorist statute] was enacted to provide relief to innocent persons who are injured through the negligence of an uninsured motorist; it is not to be ‘whittled away’ by exclusions and exceptions.” 252 So. 2d at 238.

Also see Government Employees Insurance Company v. Smith, 257 So. 2d 901 (Fla.App.1st, 1972), and Salas v. Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Company, 272 So. 2d 1 (Fla. 1973). Thus it is clear that if Florida law is to be applied, and we think it is, the exclusionary clause now under consideration is void as being against the public policy of this State.

However, we also think that even if Alabama law were controlling in this instance, the courts of Alabama would hold the present exclusionary clause to be void. The Uninsured Motorist statutes of Alabama are the same in all material respects as Florida’s statutes. While Alabama has not ruled on whether the present type of clause is or is not a valid exclusion, it has recognized the judicial hostility toward various limitations and exclusions expressed in some policy endorsements to uninsured motorist clauses. Alabama courts have further realized that the purpose of uninsured motorist statutes is to enable Alabama citizens to obtain the same protection against injury or death at the hands of an uninsured motorist as they would have had if that motorist had obtained for himself the minimum liability coverage required by law. Higgins v. Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, 282 So. 2d 295 (Ala.App., 1973); Safeco Insurance Co. of America v. Jones, 243 So. 2d 736 (Ala. 1970).

Thus, it is clear that the public policy of Alabama is the same as that of Florida with regard to uninsured motorist coverage and protection. It is our opinion that had this cause come before the courts of Alabama, those courts would follow the rationale of the Florida Mullis decision, supra, and hold the instant exclusionary clause invalid. We are aware of the decision in Lammers v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, 261 So. 2d 757 (Ala.App., 1972), which held a “household exclusion clause” applicable to the uninsured motorist provision in the policy.

However, we feel that that case is distinguishable in that it turned on the judicial policy in Alabama that insurance companies may by appropriate exclusions and definitions protect themselves from “friendly family lawsuits.” And, as was stated in the Alabama Higgins case, supra, the Lammers case, does not “approve any other exclusion by definition from the uninsured provisions of a policy other than that therein involved.” 282 So. 2d at 301.

For the reasons stated herein, the summary judgment entered in favor of appel-lee is reversed and this cause is remanded for further proceedings consistent with the view expressed herein.

Appellant has also petitioned this Court to award a reasonable attorneys’ fee pursuant to Florida Statute, § 627.428(1), F.S.A. By response, appellee contends that appellant is not entitled to an award of attorneys’ fees because the insurance policy in question was neither issued for delivery in Florida nor delivered in Florida, F.S. § 627.401(2), F.S.A. It is our feeling that the issue of whether the policy here under consideration was delivered in Florida is a proper question for the determination of the trial court, and we therefore direct the trial court to consider the motion to assess attorneys’ fees pursuant to the facts of this case and the statutes mentioned above.

Reversed and remanded.

RAWLS, C. J., and SMITH, LARRY G., Associate Judge, concur.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Roach, 945 So. 2d 1160 (Fla. 2006)
    …N.H. Ins. Co., 379 So. 2d 1287, 1290 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979) (noting that “[t]he State of Florida had significant contacts with the automobile liability policy which justified an interpretation of it under Florida law”); Johnson v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., 289 So. 2d 748, 749-50 (Fla. 1st DCA 1974) (finding that “Florida had ample contacts with the insured to apply the law of Florida”). Applying a “significant connection” test, the district court analyzed several facts to determine whether Florida bore a significant…
  • Decker v. Great Am. Ins. Co., 392 So. 2d 965 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980)
    …t forth in the Restatement (Second) of Conflicts of Laws, sections 145-46 (1971). The court noted that the “state where injury occurred may have little actual significance for the cause of action.” The court in Johnson v. Auto-Owners Insurance Co., 289 So. 2d 748 (Fla. 1st DCA 1974), employed similar reasoning in applying Florida law to allow coverage under the uninsured motorist provision of a policy issued in Alabama to an Alabama resident. The insurance policy listed a Florida address for the insured, the…
  • …No. America, 244 So. 2d 181 (2d D.C.A.1971); State-Wide Ins. Co. v. Flaks, 233 So. 2d 400 (3d D.C.A.1970). The two cases cited by appellant in its reply brief as supporting its position are readily distinguishable. Johnson v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., 289 So. 2d 748 (1st D.C. A.Fla.1974), involved uninsured motorist coverage in an automobile liability policy issued by an Alabama agency to a client who listed his home address on the application form as “Route 1, Century, Escambia, Florida 32535 (In Alabama)” and…

Previewing 3 of 8 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Authorities Cited

Full citator, related cases, and AI research tools

Open in FLexlaw