Hubbard v. Carroll

174 So. 3d 773, 2015 La. App. LEXIS 1575, 2015 WL 4930004
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedAugust 19, 2015
DocketNo. 49,879-CA
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 174 So. 3d 773 (Hubbard v. Carroll) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hubbard v. Carroll, 174 So. 3d 773, 2015 La. App. LEXIS 1575, 2015 WL 4930004 (La. Ct. App. 2015).

Opinion

STEWART, J.

| tIn this appeal, defendants, Naiman Carroll (“Carroll”) and Safeway Insurance Company (“Safeway”), are appealing the trial court’s judgment rendered in favor of Shanedra (“Reed”). For the reasons set forth in this opinion, we reverse.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On September 28, 2011, the original plaintiffs, Jasine Hubbard (“Hubbard”) and Reed, filed suit for damages against Safeway and Carroll, for injuries resulting from a two-vehicle accident. This accident, which occurred on September 29, 2010, took place at the intersection of Louisville Avenue and North 18th Street in Monroe, Louisiana.

Initially, Hubbard and Reed alleged that Carroll was the driver of one of the vehicles involved in the accident, and that they were passengers in the vehicle that Carroll was operating. As a result, they asserted that Carroll’s insurer, Safeway, was liable for their damages. Safeway answered the petition, denying any fault and/or liability, and affirmatively asserting that Hubbard was the non-permissive driver of the vehicle. Carroll and Reed were the actual passengers. Hubbard’s claim was dismissed on August 1, 2013, after she failed to answer discovery prior to trial. The pleadings were never amended to name Hubbard as a defendant.

The trial took place on January 30, 2014. Carroll testified that the vehicle that they were traveling in at the time of the accident was her mother’s vehicle. She confirmed that Hubbard was driving the vehicle. Carroll also testified that Hubbard was attempting to make a left turn, and [775]*775that the arrow signal turned yellow as she was turning.

[ 2Reed also testified that Hubbard was driving when the accident occurred, and that “she was doing everything she was supposed to do.” She further testified that she was sitting in the back seat of the vehicle, on the passenger’s side.

The trial court concluded that Hubbard’s negligence in failing to keep a proper lookout while making a left-hand turn was the sole cause of the accident. It found Safeway liable to Reed for special damages incurred as a result of the accident, as well as general damages in the amount of $10,000.00, plus interest.

On January 5, 2015, Carroll and Safeway (“collectively referred to as the “appellants”) have filed the instant appeal, asserting three assignments of error. The appellants also filed an exception of no right of action, which we refer to the merits of this appeal.

LAW AND DISCUSSION

Direct Action Statute

The appellants argue that the trial court erred in assigning 100% fault to Hubbard, a nonparty, and then casting them with liability to Reed for Hubbard’s fault. The appellants further assert that the trial court erred in finding Safeway liable to Reed pursuant to the direct action statute. Since these assignments of error are interrelated, we will discuss them together.

The appellants argue that in order for them to be liable for Hubbard’s fault and negligence, Hubbard must be an insured pursuant to their policy. As mentioned above, Hubbard was dismissed from this matter for failing to |scomply with diseov-ery. The pleadings were never amended to name Hubbard as a defendant.

The trial court rendered judgment against Safeway only. Safeway’s insured, Yulonda Carroll (“Yulonda”), the owner of the vehicle and Carroll’s mother, was not made a party in this matter. Additionally, the policy included a one-page exclusion of coverage regarding Carroll.

La. R.S. 22:1269(B)1, also known as the direct action statute, provides as follows:

(B)(1) The injured person or his or her survivors or heirs mentioned in Subsection A, at their option, shall have a right of direct action against the insurer within the terms and limits of the policy; and, such action may be brought against the insurer alone, or against both the insured and insurer jointly and in solido, in the parish in which the accident or injury occurred or in the parish in which an action could be brought against either the insured or the insurer under the general rules of venue prescribed by Code of Civil Procedure art. 42 only; however, such action may be brought against the insurer alone only when at least one of the following applies:
(a) The insured has been adjudged bankrupt by a court of competent jurisdiction or when proceedings to adjudge an insurer bankrupt have been commenced before a court of competent jurisdiction.
(b) The insured is insolvent.
(c) Service of citation or other process cannot be made on the insured.
(d) When the cause of action is for damages as a result of an offense or quasi-offense between children and their parents or between married persons.
]4(e) When the insurer is an uninsured motorist carrier.
(f) The insured is deceased.

[776]*776Courts in this state have held that direct actions against an insurer alone are strictly limited to the enumerated circumstances listed in La. R.S. 22:1269(B). White v. State Farm, 2003-0754 (La.App. 4th Cir.11/26/03), 862 So.2d 263; Foltmer v. James, 2001-1510 (La.App. 4th Cir.9/12/01), 799 So.2d 545, writ denied, 2001-2777 (La.1/4/02), 805 So.2d 213. Here, Reed did not produce any evidence that Yulonda had been adjudged bankrupt by a court of competent jurisdiction, that Yulonda was insolvent, that service of citation or other process could not be made on Yulonda, or that Yulonda was deceased.

In its written reasons for judgment, the trial court stated:

This Court, having taken testimony in this matter and thoroughly reviewed the evidence presented, concludes that the sole cause of the accident was the negligence of Jasine Hubbard in failing to keep a proper lookout prior to negotiating a left-hand turn at the intersection of Louisville Avenue and North 18th Street in Monroe, Louisiana.
The testimony of Naiman Carroll, the front-seat passenger, vividly detailed the sequence of events that transpired immediately before the accident, thereby placing Ms. Hubbard at fault. Her testimony was determined to be more credible.
The Court thus finds that the Defendants, Safeway Insurance Company of Louisiana, the insurer of the vehicle that was involved in the automobile accident, and Naiman Carroll, the insured2, are liable unto the Petitioner, Shanedra Reed, for damages.

Lin its judgment, the trial court further stated:

This Court finds that the Defendant, Safeway Insurance Company, is liable unto the Petitioner [Reed] for all special damages incurred as a result of the automobile accident. Further, general damages are to be awarded in the full amount of TEN THOUSAND ($10,-000.00) AND 00/100 DOLLARS, with interest.

We note that the record in this matter does not contain an accident report, nor does it contain photos of the intersection or the vehicles involved in the accident.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
174 So. 3d 773, 2015 La. App. LEXIS 1575, 2015 WL 4930004, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hubbard-v-carroll-lactapp-2015.