Illinois Farmers Insurance Co. v. Neumann

596 N.W.2d 685, 1999 Minn. App. LEXIS 815, 1999 WL 507678
CourtCourt of Appeals of Minnesota
DecidedJuly 20, 1999
DocketC1-99-148
StatusPublished

This text of 596 N.W.2d 685 (Illinois Farmers Insurance Co. v. Neumann) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Minnesota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Illinois Farmers Insurance Co. v. Neumann, 596 N.W.2d 685, 1999 Minn. App. LEXIS 815, 1999 WL 507678 (Mich. Ct. App. 1999).

Opinion

OPINION

WILLIS, Judge.

The district court granted respondent Illinois Farmers Insurance Company’s summary judgment motion, finding that (1) appellant Barbara Brenny was a “resident of residence premises” as that term is used in a bodily injury exclusion in defendant Katina Neumann’s renter’s insurance policy; and (2) Brenny’s medical costs and lost wages resulting from being bitten by Neu-mann’s dog are, therefore, not covered by the policy. Brenny appeals and moves for attorney fees, claiming that she should be reimbursed for the cost of defending against a frivolous claim on appeal.

FACTS

Neumann rented one-half of a duplex at 577 Brunson in St. Paul and sublet a room to Brenny for an unspecified term. The two shared the costs of rent and utilities equally.

In September 1995, Neumann’s dog bit Brenny. As a result, Brenny required medical treatment and she lost wages. Brenny sued Neumann for compensatory damages, and Neumann submitted a claim under her renter’s insurance policy written by Illinois Farmers. Illinois Farmers commenced a declaratory judgment action, seeking a determination that the policy provided no coverage for the September 1995 incident. Brenny intervened in the action.

ISSUE

Did the district court err in determining that Brenny was a “resident of residence premises” as that term is used in a bodily injury exclusion in Neumann’s renter’s insurance policy?

*687 ANALYSIS

On an appeal from summary judgment, this court asks two questions: (1) whether there are genuine issues of material fact and (2) whether the district court erred in its application of the law. State by Cooper v. French, 460 N.W.2d 2, 4 (Minn.1990). The reviewing court must also view the evidence in the light most favorable to the party against whom judgment was granted. Fabio v. Bellomo, 504 N.W.2d 758, 761 (Minn.1993).

I.

This court has not previously addressed the meaning of “resident of residence premises” in a renter’s insurance policy. Appellant urges this court to use, as a guide, factors developed by courts that have addressed the meaning of “resident of a household” in homeowner’s and automobile insurance policies. But the terms serve different functions. Determination of whether a person is a “resident of a household” commonly involves familial relationships and an. inquiry into living arrangements to decide whether the person is covered by an insurance policy. See Firemen’s Ins. Co. v. Viktora, 318 N.W.2d 704, 707 (Minn.1982) (holding that son who lived with parents while on strike was resident of parents’ household); see also Auto-Owners Ins. Co. v. Harris by Harris, 374 N.W.2d 795, 797 (Minn.App.1985) (holding son was not resident of household where he stayed at parents’ home four to five nights in previous year). Here, a “resident of residence premises” is excluded from bodily injury coverage under the renter’s insurance policy. We conclude that “resident of residence premises” is a broader term than “resident of a household” and that it is used in recognition of the fact that unrelated people commonly live together in rental premises. Therefore, a person who is not a “resident of a household” could well be a “resident of residence premises.”

The determination of residence is a question of fact. Krause by Krause v. Mutual Service Cas. Co., 399 N.W.2d 597, 601 (Minn.App.1987); Auto-Owners, 374 N.W.2d at 797. The district court held that the insurance policy’s exclusion for bodily injury to a resident of residence premises is clear and unambiguous. It also found that it was undisputed that Brenny paid rent, shared utility expenses, slept, kept her clothes, and received mail at 577 Brunson. The district court, therefore, held that Brenny was a resident of Neumann’s residence.

Brenny argues on appeal that she did not receive mail at 577 Brunson, but there is record evidence that at least some of her mail was addressed to her there, and that factor alone is not, in any event, determinative.

Brenny argues that the following factors should be considered in determining whether she was a resident of Neumann’s residence' premises: (1) length of stay in the residence; (2) intent to stay at the residence; and (3) whether her presence in the residence was continuous and significant. Again, these factors are, to some extent, more relevant to a determination of whether a person is a resident of a household, but nevertheless, the record shows that at the time of the incident, Brenny had been renting from Neumann for two months. See American Family Mut. Ins. Co. v. Thiem, 498 N.W.2d 279, 283 (Minn.App.1993) (length of stay is one factor to be considered in determining residency in a household), aff'd in part, rev’d in part, 503 N.W.2d 789 (Minn.1993). Before she was bitten, Brenny articulated no plans to move out of Neumann’s residence. See Viktora, 318 N.W.2d at 707 (holding son was resident of household where his plans to move out were not specific). Brenny also argues she was not a resident because her presence was not continuous; she often returned to her parents’ home on days off and used their address for her driver’s license. See Auto-Owners, 374 N.W.2d at 797 (holding continuous, significant presence in home is a factor in determining residency in household). But we conclude *688 that leaving home for a few days each week does not change a person’s residence, and our supreme court has recognized that adult children who have a residence elsewhere often continue to use their parents’ address as a convenience. See Fruchtman v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 274 Minn. 54, 57, 142 N.W.2d 299, 301 (1966).

Second, Brenny argues that the district court should have considered the absence of any social relationship between Neumann and her in determining whether she was a resident of Neumann’s residence premises. Viktora, 318 N.W.2d at 706 (living in close, intímate, and informal relationship factor in determining whether person is resident of household). But such an analysis is relevant only to determining whether a person is a resident of a household and has no applicability here.

Third, Brenny argues Neumann reasonably expected to be covered for such a claim as the one here. Whatever Neumann’s expectations, the exclusions in the policy are not ambiguous. Atwater Creamery Co. v. Western Nat’l Mut. Ins. Co.,

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Related

Fruchtman v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance
142 N.W.2d 299 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1966)
Auto-Owners Insurance Co. v. Harris Ex Rel. Harris
374 N.W.2d 795 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1985)
American Family Mutual Insurance Co. v. Thiem
503 N.W.2d 789 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1993)
Firemen's Insurance Co. of Newark v. Viktora
318 N.W.2d 704 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1982)
Krause Ex Relo. Krause v. Mutual Service Casualty Co.
399 N.W.2d 597 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1987)
Atwater Creamery Co. v. Western National Mutual Insurance Co.
366 N.W.2d 271 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1985)
American Family Mutual Insurance Co. v. Thiem
498 N.W.2d 279 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1993)
State Ex Rel. Cooper v. French
460 N.W.2d 2 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1990)
Fabio v. Bellomo
504 N.W.2d 758 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1993)

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Bluebook (online)
596 N.W.2d 685, 1999 Minn. App. LEXIS 815, 1999 WL 507678, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/illinois-farmers-insurance-co-v-neumann-minnctapp-1999.