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Register v. Nationwide Mutual Fire Insurance Company3/28/2003
Judgment Appealed From Is: Affirmed
Note: We have sua sponte removed this case from the accelerated calendar.
. Plaintiffs-appellants Adolphus M. Register and Sandra L. Register filed a complaint seeking to recover damages for injuries Adolphus sustained in an automobile accident and for Sandra's resulting loss of consortium. They also sought uninsured/ underinsured motorists coverage ("UIM") under policies issued to their employers pursuant to the Ohio Supreme Court's decision in Scott-Pontzer v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 85 Ohio St.3d 660, 1999-Ohio-292, 710 N.E.2d 1116, and its progeny. They and their insurance carrier, defendant/cross-claim plaintiff/appellee Nationwide Mutual Fire Insurance Company appeal the trial court's decision denying them that coverage on the basis that Ohio law did not govern the dispute regarding their employers' policies. We affirm the trial court's judgment.
. On July 16, 1998, Adolphus was driving his own car on the interstate near Titusville, Florida, when Kathryn A. Hollingsworth lost control of her car and struck his car, causing him serious injury. The Registers' automobile insurance policy with Nationwide contained liability as well as UIM motorist's coverage. Hollingsworth, who died from injuries she sustained in the collision, did not have bodily injury liability insurance. Her insurance policy only included property damage liability coverage and personal injury protection coverage, as allowed by Florida law.
. At the time of the accident, Adolphus was employed by Hobart Corporation, a subsidiary of Premark. Defendant/cross-claim defendant/appellee Travelers Insurance Company provided insurance coverage to Hobart and Premark under a commercial automobile policy, a commercial general liability policy, and a commercial excess general liability policy. Sandra was an employee of PNC Bank Corporation at the time of the accident. Defendant/cross-claim defendant/appellee Chubb Insurance provided insurance coverage to PNC under a business automobile insurance policy.
. After the Registers filed their complaint seeking UIM coverage under the Nationwide, Chubb, and Travelers policies, Nationwide filed a cross-claim against Travelers and Chubb. It asked the court to declare that its UIM coverage was excess over the UIM coverage provided by Travelers and Chubb, or, in the alternative that Travelers and Chubb must provide UIM coverage on a pro rata basis with Nationwide.
. Chubb and Travelers filed motions for summary judgment, in which they argued, among other things, that Pennsylvania law applied to the Chubb policy and that Illinois law applied to the Travelers policy. Since neither Pennsylvania nor Illinois had a case like Scott-Pontzer or any statute that would provide coverage to an employee under his or her employer's commercial policies, Chubb and Travelers contended they were entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The trial court agreed, holding that they did not owe the Registers UIM coverage. It granted summary judgment in favor of Chubb and Travelers on both the Registers' claims and Nationwide's cross-claims against them. The court also found that there was no just cause for delay pursuant to Civ.R. 54(B), and appellants filed timely appeals from the court's judgment.
. In their respective assignments of error, the Registers and Nationwide both argue that the trial court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of Chubb and Travelers. They contend that Ohio law applied to the Registers' claims under both of those policies, and that they were entitled to UIM coverage pursuant to the Ohio Supreme Court's holding in Scott-Pontzer. This assignment of error is not wel
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