Driver's injured outside of their own jurisdiction may find that their insurance is reduced to the minimum required in the jurisdiction where the accident occurs.
Appeal by the plaintiffs from a decision finding that the respondent insurer was under no liability in respect of an accident that occurred in Florida was dismissed as the Newfoundland and Labrador legislation limited recovery for personal injury caused by uninsured drivers in another jurisdiction to the minimum amount required in that other jurisdiction.
Kennedy v. CGU Insurance Co. of Canada [2008] N.J. No. 182 Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court - Court of Appeal B.G. Welsh. M. Rowe and L.D. Barry JJ.A. June 26, 2008.
The appellants had been struck in their rental car by an uninsured motorist in Florida. Florida does not require motorists to carry third party liability insurance. The appellants made a claim for personal injury damages for uninsured automobile coverage under their Standard Automobile Policy, in Newfoundland and Labrador. The Standard Automobile Policy provides that the province of Newfoundland and Labrador will pay out in damages incurred as a result of an uninsured automobile the lesser of $200,000.00 or the “minimum limit for motor vehicle liability insurance coverage” in the jurisdiction of the accident. At issue was whether the appellants could claim recovery on their policy given that the jurisdiction where the accident occurred does not require third party personal liability insurance.
The Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal affirmed the trial judge’s decision that the policy wording dictates that there can be no recovery of damages caused by an uninsured motorist in jurisdictions where there is no minimum limit for motor vehicle liability insurance coverage, because the policy covers only the lesser of the minimum limit in the jurisdiction and $200,000.00. Accordingly, the court dismissed the appeal.
This case was originally summarized by jhavelaar@harpergrey.com and originally eduted by dpilley@harpergrey.com
