Belford Trucking Co. v. Bartlett

299 So. 2d 608, 1974 Fla. App. LEXIS 8827
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedAugust 30, 1974
DocketNo. 73-729
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 299 So. 2d 608 (Belford Trucking Co. v. Bartlett) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Belford Trucking Co. v. Bartlett, 299 So. 2d 608, 1974 Fla. App. LEXIS 8827 (Fla. Ct. App. 1974).

Opinion

OWEN, Chief Judge.

Involved here is a question of whether the lessee of a motor vehicle was entitled to coverage under an automobile liability insurance policy issued by appellee-Transit Casualty Company to the lessor of the vehicle.

This case is the sequel to Leaseco, Inc. v. Bartlett, Fla.App.1971, 257 So.2d 629 (cert. den. Fla. 1972, 262 So.2d 447). We there affirmed the judgment which Mr. Bartlett had recovered in his suit for the wrongful death of his wife arising out of the negligence of Bobby Dale Bowman while operating a truck which had been leased from the owner, Leaseco, Inc. The judgment was against the Bowmans,1 Bel-ford Trucking Company, Inc. under whose ICC certificate Bowman had been operating, Leaseco, Inc. as the owner of the ve-[609]*609hide, and Transit Casualty Company as Leaseco’s liability insurance carrier.

In the course of the litigation, Belford Trucking Company had cross-claimed against Bowman on an indemnification theory, and ultimately recovered a judgment against Bowman in the amount of $34,794.68, which represented the amount Belford Trucking Company had contributed toward payment of the Bartlett judgment plus its defense costs incurred in the action. Thereafter, in an attempt to collect that judgment, Belford Trucking Company brought the present garnishment action against Transit Casualty Company on the theory that Bowman was an insured under the automobile liability insurance policy which Transit Casualty Company had issued to Leaseco, Inc., as the named insured. The issues made in the garnishment action were tried by the court without a jury, and it is from the final judgment in favor of the garnishee, Transit Casualty Company, (which inferentially found that Bowman was not an insured under Transit’s policy) that Belford Trucking Company brings this appeal.

The insurance policy involved in this case was not a standard policy, but rather was custom made by means of a series of endorsements attached to the declaration page and a standard policy jacket. Because Leaseco’s buisiness consisted of leasing over-the-road equipment on both a long term and short term basis, the policy was written as a gross receipts policy covering all of Leaseco’s vehicles without specifically describing them. The underwriter determined the rate per hundred dollars of gross receipts which was required to be charged as a premium for the risk, and after payment of an advance premium based on estimated gross receipts, the policy required periodic reporting of gross receipts and periodic audits.

Of particular importance in determining the issue before us are the following portions of Endorsements No. 9 and No. 10:

Endorsement No. 9:
“1. DEFINITION OF INSURED: Subject otherwise to the provisions of the Definition of Insured agreement of the policy.
(a) the insurance with respect to any driverless automobile applies only to the Named Insured and rentee 2 and any employer or employee of the rentee.
“3. PREMIUM: the premium stated in the schedule is an estimated premium only. Upon termination of the policy, the earned premium for such automobiles shall be computed by the application of the receipts rates stated in the schedule to the amt. of gross receipts during the policy period from all such automobiles, but such premiums shall not be less than the minimum premium stated in the schedule. If the earned premium thus computed exceeds the estimated advance premium paid for such automobiles, the named insured shall pay the excess to the co., if less, the co. shall return to the named insured the unearned portion paid by such ins. The words ‘gross receipts’ means the total amt. to which the names [iic] insured is entitled for the rental to others of driverless cars during the policy period, hut shall not mean the amt. derived from rental to others who furnish their own primary ins. as provided in sub-paragraph 1 of endorsement # 10; the named insured shall maintain evidence of such primary ins. for the company’s inspection. (Emphasis added.)
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“7. DEFINITION: ‘Driverless Automobile’ means a land motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer designed for travel on public roads (including any machinery or apparatus attached thereto) while rented without the named ins. or a [610]*610chauffeur of the Named Ins. in attendance.”
Endorsement No. 10:
“It is agreed that such insurance as is afforded by the policy for Bodily Injury and for Property Damage Liability applies with respect to any automobile rented to others for which the lessee is providing primary liability [insurance] subject to the following provisions:
“1. The insurance applies only while the automobile is rented without the named insured or a chauffeur of the named insured in attendance, under a written contract which provides that the lessee shall maintain in effect, bodily injury liability and property damage liability insurance covering the interests of the named insured on a direct primary basis at limits of liability not less than: $100,000.00 — Each Person — Bodily Injury.”
“Evidence of such insurance shall <• be furnished the named insured by means of Certificate of Insurance issued by the lessee’s insurer and which certificate shall be maintained by the named insured for the Company’s inspection.
“2. the insurance applies only to the named insured while the automobile is so rented.
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“4. The insurance shall be excess over any other valid and collectible insurance available to any insured for bodily injury and for property damage liability.” (Emphasis added.)

While on first reading the above-quoted portions of Endorsements No. 9 and No. 10 may seem obscure, we think that upon reflection the general underwriting intent with respect to driverless automobiles is -plain.

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Related

Central National Insurance v. Transit Casualty Co.
428 F. Supp. 6 (M.D. Florida, 1970)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
299 So. 2d 608, 1974 Fla. App. LEXIS 8827, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/belford-trucking-co-v-bartlett-fladistctapp-1974.