Meche v. Thibodeaux

550 So. 2d 346, 1989 WL 116191
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedOctober 4, 1989
Docket88-459
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 550 So. 2d 346 (Meche v. Thibodeaux) 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
Meche v. Thibodeaux, 550 So. 2d 346, 1989 WL 116191 (La. Ct. App. 1989).

Opinion

550 So.2d 346 (1989)

Linda MECHE and Fred Meche, Plaintiffs-Appellees,
v.
Janet A. THIBODEAUX, et al., State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 88-459.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

October 4, 1989.
Rehearing Denied November 7, 1989.

*347 Voorhies & Labbe, Amos H. Davis, Lafayette, for plaintiffs-appellees.

Roy, Forrest & Lopresto, Stephen H. Myers, Lafayette, for defendant-appellant.

Before GUIDRY, LABORDE and KNOLL, JJ.

GUIDRY, Judge.

Fred and Linda Meche were injured in a two vehicle accident which occurred on March 15, 1985 in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana. *348 At the time of the accident, Fred Meche was one-half owner of a corporation known as Computer World, Incorporated and was driving a 1984 Ford van registered to, and owned by, Computer World. The van was insured by State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (hereafter State Farm) under policy number 432-8826-FO6-18 which was issued to Computer World, named Computer World as the "named insured" and which provided $100,000/$300,000 UM coverage in addition to the $5,000.00 per person per accident medical payments coverage.

The other vehicle involved in the accident, a 1984 Toyota Corolla, was owned and was being operated by Janet A. Thibodeaux. The Thibodeaux vehicle was insured by Travelers Insurance Company (hereafter Travelers) under a policy of automobile liability insurance with bodily injury limits of $10,000.00 each person and $20,000.00 each accident. The Meches instituted suit against Thibodeaux, Travelers and their UM carrier, State Farm.

Before the case went to trial, Travelers tendered and paid its policy limits and both Travelers and its insured (Thibodeaux) were released from the suit.

Prior to trial, State Farm paid Fred Meche a total of $105,000.00 and paid Linda Meche $23,000.00.

The matter was tried to a jury however, the parties agreed that the issues of coverage, stacking and penalties and attorney's fees would be decided by the trial judge. The jury fixed Fred Meche's damages at $182,000.00 and Linda Meche's damages at $32,000.00. The trial judge determined that a policy of insurance issued by State Farm to another corporation partly owned by Fred Meche, Business and Office Systems, Inc. (hereafter Business Systems), provided excess UM coverage to the plaintiffs and rendered judgment accordingly. Plaintiffs' demands for penalties and attorney's fees were rejected.

Defendant, State Farm, appealed urging error in the trial court's determination that, under the circumstances, the State Farm policy of insurance issued to Business Systems provided excess UM coverage to the Meches. Plaintiffs answered the appeal urging (1) error in the trial court's failure to award penalties and attorney's fees; (2) that the damage awards are inadequate; and, (3) error in the trial court's casting plaintiff, Linda Meche, with a portion of the costs.

INSURANCE COVERAGE—STACKING

At the time of the accident, six policies of insurance issued by State Farm to Computer World and/or Business Systems (Computer World's predecessor corporation) were in effect covering six different vehicles. The insured under two of the policies was Computer World while the insured under the other four policies was Business Systems. A natural person was not named as an insured under any of the six policies.

At trial, plaintiffs argued that they should be allowed to avail themselves of the UM coverage under two of the six State Farm policies under the provisions of La.R.S. 22:1406 D(1)(c)(i) and (ii):

"c. If the insured has any limits of uninsured motorist coverage in a policy of automobile liability insurance, in accordance with the terms of Sub-Section (D)(1), then such limits of liability shall not be increased because of multiple motor vehicles covered under said policy of insurance and such limits of uninsured motorist coverage shall not be increased when the insured has insurance available to him under more than one uninsured motorist coverage provision or policy; provided, however, that with respect to other insurance available the policy of insurance or endorsement shall provide the following:

With respect to bodily injury to an insured party while occupying an automobile not owned by said insured party, the following priorities of recovery under uninsured coverage shall apply:
(i) The uninsured motorist coverage on the vehicle in which the injured party was an occupant is primary;
(ii) Should that primary uninsured motorist coverage be exhausted due to the extent of damages, then the injured occupant may recover as excess *349 from other uninsured motorist coverage available to him. In no instance shall more than one coverage for more than one uninsured motorist policy be available as excess over and above the primary coverage available to the injured occupant."

The trial judge agreed with plaintiffs on this point and, in his reasons for judgment, stated:

"Clearly the Computer policy on the subject vehicle was primary. The only question is whether another policy provided excess coverage. Clearly the other Computer policy did not. However, equally clearly, the Business policies did. These policies under Section III—Uninsured Motorist Vehicle—Coverage U stated that an insured is:
4. any other person (other than the named insured, here: Business) while occupying
b. a vehicle not owned by the insured, while being driven by the insured (a corporation can only drive through its agents, employees, officers, etc.) with the owner's consent.
Here the corporation, through its employee, plaintiff-husband, was operating a vehicle not owned by Business within the scope of the owner's (Computer) consent."

On appeal, State Farm argues that the Meches do not qualify as insureds for UM purposes under the Business Systems policies and the trial court erred in deciding otherwise. We agree and reverse.

The UM portion of the State Farm policies in question each defines insured[1] as:

"1. the first person named in the declarations;

2. his or her spouse;

3. their relatives; and

4. any other person while occupying:

a. your car, a temporary substitute car, a newly acquired car or a trailer attached to such car. Such vehicle has to be used within the scope of the consent of you or your spouse; or
b. a car not owned by you, your spouse or any relative, or a trailer attached to such a car. It has to be driven by the first person named or that person's spouse and within the scope of the owner's consent.

Such other person occupying a vehicle used to carry persons for a charge is not an insured.

5. any person entitled to recover damages because of bodily injury to an insured under 1 through 4 above."

There is no "person" (human being) designated as the named insured in either of the four policies in question. Business and Office Systems, Inc., is a corporation and has an identity, conferred by law, separate and apart from its stockholders and officers. Therefore, since the named insured is a corporation, the Meches were not insureds under numbers 1, 2 or 3 above.

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Bluebook (online)
550 So. 2d 346, 1989 WL 116191, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/meche-v-thibodeaux-lactapp-1989.