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When Vicki Blasing suffered a foot injury from some lumber that fell on her feet while it was being loaded onto her truck, there was a major insurance debate about who was to blame, if any, and who would cover the cost of treatment for the injured foot.The Wisconsin Court, District IV finally came out with its decision last January 3 that the company that was loading the lumber using a forklift was not liable to pay for damages since Vicki was using her truck at the time of the accident even if she was standing beside it at the time of the accident. The judge defended the decision saying that the statute must be followed and the insurance company can always work towards amending its provisions if it wants changes made for special circumstances.
Judge Paul Lundsten stated that under Wisconsin Stat section 632, “coverage covers any person using the vehicle.” However, he further added that the insurance company can “limit coverage to use that is with permission of the named insured only.” The judge also decided that loading or unloading constitutes use and in the case of Vicki Blasing, she had given the lumber company her consent to have the forklift load the lumber she bought onto her vehicle.
For other consumers, this may be an early warning sign to start paying attention to the small details in the insurance contract especially when renewing the policy. With this recent case running against the insurance company, some insurance companies may start to narrow the definition of coverage for “permissive user.”
Contact Info:
Name: Brad Long
Email: Send Email
Organization: Brad Long
Address: 1540 Thomas Lake Road
Phone: 888-562-9874
Website: http://www.cheapestautoquote.info
Release ID: 3157
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