Massa v. Southern Heritage Ins. Co.

697 So. 2d 868, 1997 Fla. App. LEXIS 6153, 1997 WL 291702
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedJune 4, 1997
Docket95-4063
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 697 So. 2d 868 (Massa v. Southern Heritage Ins. Co.) 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
Massa v. Southern Heritage Ins. Co., 697 So. 2d 868, 1997 Fla. App. LEXIS 6153, 1997 WL 291702 (Fla. Ct. App. 1997).

Opinion

697 So.2d 868 (1997)

Rudolph MASSA and Kristen Massa, Appellants,
v.
SOUTHERN HERITAGE INSURANCE COMPANY, Appellee.

No. 95-4063.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District.

June 4, 1997.
Rehearing, Rehearing, and Certification Denied August 27, 1997.

*869 Steven M. Weinger and Jonathan Morton of Kurzban, Kurzban, Weinger & Tetzeli, P.A., Miami, for appellants.

Geralyn M. Passaro and Steven C. Simon of Peters, Robertson, Lax, Parsons, Welcher, Mowers & Passaro, P.A., Fort Lauderdale, for appellee.

Rehearing, Rehearing En Banc, and Certification Denied August 27, 1997.

GLICKSTEIN, Judge.

Final summary judgment was entered against appellants in this action against their uninsured motorist insurer. We reverse and remand for jury trial, as sought by appellants.

The trial court's judgment recites, in part:

2. That based upon the deposition of the Plaintiff, RUDOLPH MASSA, he was driving his vehicle on March 12, 1993 when the vehicle in front of him abruptly stopped to make a turn into a gas station.
3. That based upon the deposition of the Plaintiff, RUDOLPH MASSA, in order to avoid impact with the vehicle, he slammed on his brakes. There was no physical contact between RUDOLPH MASSA'S body and his own vehicle and no physical contact between RUDOLPH MASSA'S vehicle with any other vehicle or object.
4. That based upon the deposition of the Plaintiff, RUDOLPH MASSA, after his vehicle came to a stop, thereby avoiding collision, he drove away from the scene. The driver of the other vehicle has never been identified.
5. That based upon uncontroverted testimony, this Court concludes that because there was no physical contact or impact by RUDOLPH MASSA'S vehicle with any object whatsoever, the subject incident did not involve a "hit and run" vehicle. Therefore, as a matter of law the subject policy does not afford uninsured motorists coverage to the Plaintiffs. L.P. Sims v. American Hardware Mutual Insurance Company, 429 So.2d 21 (Fla. 2d DCA 1982); Brown v. Progressive Mutual Insurance Company, 249 So.2d 429 (Fla.1971).
6. That based upon uncontroverted testimony, this Court concludes that the identity of the driver of the unknown vehicle was ascertainable, but was not identified since RUDOLPH MASSA drove away from the area without stopping. According to the subject policy, uninsured motorists coverage is only provided when an accident involves a "hit and run vehicle whose operator or owner cannot be identified...". Since the vehicle could have been identified, as a matter of law the subject policy does not afford uninsured motorists coverage to the Plaintiffs. McKay v. Highlands Insurance Company, 287 So.2d 393 (Fla. 3d DCA 1973); Hart v. Doe, 261 S.C. 116, 198 S.E.2d 526 [(1973)]; Simmons v. Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corporation, 44 A.D.2d 673, 354 N.Y.S.2d 642 [(1974)].
7. That based upon uncontroverted testimony, this Court finds that the accident cannot be proved by competent evidence other than the testimony of the Plaintiffs, as required by Part C — Uninsured Motorists Coverage Florida, section C, paragraph 3 of the subject policy. Other than the Plaintiffs' testimony, the only other evidence to support the facts of the alleged accident is an unsworn and unnotorized statement of Frank Massa, who is now deceased. Pursuant to the Florida Evidence Code, this statement cannot be used to prove the facts of the accident. Therefore, as a matter of law the subject policy *870 does not afford uninsured motorists coverage to the Plaintiffs.

While we agree with the first three paragraphs, we respectfully disagree with the next three.

Taking paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 of the summary final judgment in order, the first issue for our review is whether the absence of contact by the injured appellant with any object precludes recovery.[1] We hold that it does not. First, there is nothing in section 627.727(1), Florida Statutes (Supp.1992), which requires contact with anything. In its relevant part, it is the simplest of statements, providing:

(1) No motor vehicle liability insurance policy which provides bodily injury liability coverage shall be delivered or issued for delivery in this state with respect to any specifically insured or identified motor vehicle registered or principally garaged in this state unless uninsured motor vehicle coverage is provided therein or supplemental thereto for the protection of persons insured thereunder who are legally entitled to recover damages from owners or operators of uninsured motor vehicles because of bodily injury, sickness, or disease, including death, resulting therefrom.

In Brown v. Progressive Mutual Insurance Co., 249 So.2d 429 (Fla.1971), the supreme court quashed the opinion of the district court of appeal and remanded with instruction to reinstate the trial court's decision which voided a policy provision requiring physical contact between the insured or his vehicle and another vehicle. The court said with respect to the uninsured motorist statute:

The purpose of the uninsured motorist statute is to protect persons who are injured or damaged by other motorists who in turn are not insured and cannot make whole the injured party. The statute is designed for the protection of injured persons, not for the benefit of insurance companies or motorists who cause damage to others.

It added:

The argument that the policy requirement of physical contact is reasonable is fallacious. The only reason for such a requirement is to prove that the accident actually did occur as a claimant may say it did. This is a question of fact to be determined by the jury, or the judge if demand for jury trial is not made. If the injured party can sustain the burden of proof that an accident did occur, he should be entitled to recover, regardless of the actuality of physical contact. If twenty witnesses will swear they saw the accident happen, their testimony should not be deemed worthless, as it would be under the decision here for review.

Here, the policy plainly insures without there being a "hitting"; providing:

A. We will pay compensatory damages which an "insured" is legally entitled to recover from the owner or operator of an "uninsured motor vehicle" because of "bodily injury":
....
*871 C. "Uninsured motor vehicle" means a land motor vehicle or trailer of any type:
....
3. Which is a hit-and-run-vehicle whose operator or owner cannot be identified and which hits or which causes an accident resulting in "bodily injury" without hitting: ....

(Emphasis added).

Yet, appellee argues that there still must be some "hitting or other contact" between the insured's vehicle and some other object or between the insured and some part of his vehicle. We reject its argument, given the policy language and the rationale of Brown, which was quoted with approval in Hartford Accident & Indemnity Co. v. Novak, 83 Wash.2d 576, 520 P.2d 1368, 1372 (1974).

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697 So. 2d 868, 1997 Fla. App. LEXIS 6153, 1997 WL 291702, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/massa-v-southern-heritage-ins-co-fladistctapp-1997.