Insurance Policies: Are Your Family Members Really Covered?
You walk into your local State Farm office and say “I need full coverage insurance to protect me and my family should I ever get in an accident.” Your agent sells you a policy with every bell and whistle. You think that your family is well protected.
Now imagine the worst: Dad, Mom and toddler son are in a Dayton car accident when Dad takes his eyes of the road to answer his cell phone. The car runs off the road and strikes a tree. Mom is severely and permanently injured. Dad was negligent in causing the accident.
Mom does not work and is the primary caretaker for the son. Mom will be unable to care for her son ever again. Dad has to stop working to take care of his wife and son. Hospital bills spiral out of control and the family is forced to file for bankruptcy and sell their house.
Can Mom make a claim under the automobile insurance liability coverage for the injuries caused by her husband? NO
Now imagine: Dad is driving a neighbor to the local auto parts store. Dad runs off the road and strikes a tree injuring the neighbor.
Can the neighbor make a claim under Dad’s automobile insurance liability coverage for his injuries? YES
Did you know that most automobile insurance policies exclude coverage for injuries to family members caused by family members? It is called the intra-family liability exclusion.
Why do insurance companies write such exclusions into their policies? Because we ride with our family members more than any other person.
In 2001, the Ohio General Assembly amended Ohio Revised Code Section 3937.18 to remove language from the statute that allowed insurance companies to include the intra-family exclusion into insurance policies. However, when the law was amended, the General Assembly also provided that insurance companies may include exclusions to coverage under certain situations, listing some specific examples. However the amendment, in listing the examples, stated that insurance companies were not “… limited to” those examples. While the intra-family exclusion was not specifically listed as an example of an allowable exclusion, insurance companies seized on the phrase “but not limited to” and have written the intra-family exclusion back into their policies.
Every Ohio citizen needs to read his or her insurance policy and ask the insurance agent if family members are protected if injured by another family member’s negligence. If you have such a claim and your insurance company denies payment for injuries contact your lawyer.
Tags: attorney, Car Accidents, dayton car accident lawyer, law firm, lawyer, Personal Injury