Tafoya Ex Rel. Armijo v. Western Farm Bureau Insurance

872 P.2d 358, 117 N.M. 385
CourtNew Mexico Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 29, 1994
Docket21244
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 872 P.2d 358 (Tafoya Ex Rel. Armijo v. Western Farm Bureau Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Tafoya Ex Rel. Armijo v. Western Farm Bureau Insurance, 872 P.2d 358, 117 N.M. 385 (N.M. 1994).

Opinion

OPINION

BACA, Justice.

Plaintiff-Appellant, Erma Tafoya, acting as next friend of her minor son, Gilbert Armijo, appeals the district court’s order granting summary judgment in favor of the Defendant-Appellee, Western Farm Bureau Insurance Co. (“Western”). This case arose out of an automobile accident in which Armijo was the passenger. Armijo sustained personal injuries and was awarded a default judgment against the parents of the child who was driving the van at the time of the accident, Justo and Eileen Martinez (“the Martinezes”). Plaintiff initiated garnishment proceedings against Western, the company who issued the Martinezes’ automobile insurance policy. Western denied that it owed any debt to Plaintiff. Plaintiff then filed a complaint in controversion of garnishee’s answer to writ of garnishment against Western. Western filed a motion for summary judgment, which was granted by the district court. On appeal we address one issue: Whether a drivers exclusion endorsement that does not bear the signatures of all named insureds, is ineffective under the Mandatory Financial Responsibility Act, NMSA 1978, §§ 66-5-201 to -239 (Repl.Pamp.1989 & Cum.Supp.1993) (“the Act”). We review this case pursuant to SCRA 1986, 12-102(A)(1) (Repl.Pamp.1992), and reverse.

I

The facts relevant to this appeal are as follows. Plaintiff originally brought suit against the Martinezes, Freddie Martinez’s parents, and Freddie Martinez individually. The Martinezes were the owners of a van driven by Freddie Martinez on January 11, 1992, when it was involved in a collision with a train. On that evening, Freddie Martinez was driving the van at a moderate speed down a road that approached a railroad crossing. As the van got closer to the railroad tracks, the brakes failed to work properly. The van rolled into the side of the moving train at a slow speed. As a result of the collision, Armijo, who was the passenger in the van, suffered personal injuries.

The Martinezes’ automobile policy was with Western. The omnibus clause of the policy provided that the Martinezes were covered for liability “arising out of an occurrence” involving an insured vehicle. The policy defines “occurrence” to mean “an accident arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use of a motor vehicle----” When the Martinezes initially applied for insurance with Western, the application for coverage incorrectly stated that Freddie Martinez was six years old and further stated that Justo and Eileen Martinez were the only licensed drivers in the household. After the issuance of the insurance policy and completion of the erroneous application, Freddie Martinez was involved in an accident while driving the family vehicle. Upon learning of the accident, Western advised Eileen Martinez that it would either have to increase the premiums to cover the teenage driver or exclude Freddie Martinez from the policy. Eileen Martinez advised Western that the premium was too high and that she would agree to exclude Freddie Martinez as a named insured. Eileen Martinez then executed the named operator exclusion endorsement that specifically excluded Freddie Martinez as a covered driver under the policy. The drivers exclusion endorsement, conceded to be attached to the Martinezes’ policy at the time of the accident, provided:

Nothing herein contained shall alter, vary, waive, or extend any provision or condition of the policy except as herein provided. Subject to all other terms and conditions of the policy to which this endorsement is attached, it is understood and agreed by and between the Company and the Named Insured that as part of the consideration for the issuance or continuance of this policy, that the policy to which this endorsement is attached, shall not be in force and effect while any motor vehicle which would be covered by the policy is being operated by, in care of, or in charge of Freddy [sic] Martinez.

Plaintiff alleged that the Martinezes entrusted their van to Freddie Martinez although the van “was in a dangerous operating condition in that [it] had unsafe and inadequate braking capability and braking components,” and that they “knew, or should have known, of the dangerous condition of the brakes of the van.”

The Martinezes sought bankruptcy protection after they were served with the complaint. The United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Mexico entered an order permitting the proceeding to continue in respect to the Martinezes, but solely for the purpose of allowing enforcement of any judgment obtained, by garnishment or other means, against Western. A default judgment was entered against the Martinezes in the amount of $35,000.

Upon receiving the default judgment, Plaintiff initiated garnishment proceedings against Western. Western denied that it owed any debt to Plaintiff. In response to Plaintiffs complaint, Western denied that the coverage limits of its policy were applicable to the judgment entered against the Martinezes and filed for summary judgment, contending that its policy specifically excluded coverage for any motor vehicle while it was being operated by, in the care of, or in the charge of Freddie Martinez. The district court granted the motion for summary judgment.

II

On appeal, we address whether the requirements of the Act were satisfied with respect to the drivers exclusion endorsement. The Act provides that an insurer and an insured may contract, in a motor vehicle liability policy, to exclude a named driver. Section 66-5-221(K) (“The certified motor vehicle liability policy may be endorsed to eliminate a named driver.”); see also Garza v. Glen Falls Ins. Co., 105 N.M. 220, 222-28, 731 P.2d 363, 365-66 (1986) (holding that drivers exclusion endorsement is enforceable when in form set forth in Section 65-5-222). “Such endorsement must bear the signatures of the named insured.” Id.

Plaintiff contends that the named operator exclusionary endorsement contained in the Martinezes’ insurance policy fails to comply with the provisions of the Act with respect to Justo Martinez because he did not sign the drivers exclusion endorsement. Plaintiff argues that the Act clearly requires the “signatures” of each named insured and not just the signature of one of the named insureds. We agree.

Justo and Eileen Martinez’s names are listed prominently at the top of the declarations sheet of their insurance policy; thus both Justo and Eileen Martinez were named insureds. See Robert E. Keeton & Alan I. Widiss, Insurance Law, § 4.9(a) (practitioner’s ed. 1988) (identity of “named insured” determined by examining declarations page of policy for person or persons named who purchased coverage). Since both Justo and Eileen Martinez were named insureds, they both were required to sign the drivers exclusion endorsement for the exclusion to be valid. See Section 66-5-221(K). Although this may seem to be inconvenient to policyholders who wish to exclude their minor children from their policies, our holding today is in conformance with the legislature’s purpose behind the Act. The legislature expressed this purpose in Section 66-5-201.1:

The legislature is aware that motor vehicle accidents in the state of New Mexico can result in catastrophic financial hardship.

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Related

Moore v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance
888 P.2d 1004 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 1994)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
872 P.2d 358, 117 N.M. 385, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tafoya-ex-rel-armijo-v-western-farm-bureau-insurance-nm-1994.