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Mutual of Enumclaw Insurance Co. v. Grimstad-Hardy9/7/1993
The appellants, Barbara Grimstad-Hardy and her father, Ronald E. Grimstad, appeal from a summary judgment proceeding in favor of the respondent, Mutual of Enumclaw Insurance Company. Grimstad-Hardy was injured when an uninsured motorist struck the vehicle in which she was a passenger. Grimstad-Hardy asserts that under the underinsured motorist (UIM) statute, RCW 48.22.030, she may "stack" coverage for the three vehicles insured under her policy. Grimstad-Hardy alternatively argues that the UIM provisions of the policy contain ambiguous language and should be construed to allow stacking. Moreover, Grimstad-Hardy asserts that the "per accident" liability limit of $200,000 is applicable rather than the "per person" liability of $100,000. We affirm.
Barbara Grimstad-Hardy was a passenger in a vehicle owned and operated by Henry Blair. The car was struck by an uninsured driver. Grimstad-Hardy was seriously injured and asserts that her damages exceed $300,000. Grimstad-Hardy received $50,000 from Blair's insurance company, United Services Automobile Association (USAA), pursuant to Blair's UIM policy. Grimstad-Hardy also has UIM coverage through a policy of insurance issued to her father, Ronald Grimstad, by Mutual of Enumclaw Insurance Company (Mutual of Enumclaw). The Mutual of Enumclaw policy covers four vehicles, three of which have UIM coverage. The coverage page of the policy states the amount of uninsured coverage for those three vehicles as follows:
UNINSURED MOTORIST $100,000 EACH PERSON
BI = $200,000 PD = 25,000 EACH ACCID
The UIM section of the policy contains a limit on liability as follows:
C. OUR LIMIT OF LIABILITY
1. Regardless of the number of covered cars, insureds, claims made or vehicles involved in the accident or premiums
shown on the Coverage Page, the most we will pay for bodily injury or property damage resulting from any one accident is the Underinsured Motorist limit shown for the covered car on the Coverage Page.
No one will be entitled to receive duplicate payments for the same elements of loss as a result of the application of this provision.
If an injured person has other similar insurance available under other policies, the total limits of liability of all coverage shall not exceed the higher of the applicable limits of the respective coverages.
The policy further explains "covered car":
A. The Coverage Page shows cars that are covered cars. With respect to this insurance car means:
1. Any vehicle you own which is shown on the Cover Page with a "policy form" of "P" denoting Personal Car. Insurance applies only where a specific premium charge indicates there is coverage.
The general provisions of the policy also contain a separability clause:
5. Two or More Cars Insured.
a. If this policy and any other car insurance policy issued to you by us apply to the same accident, the maximum limit of our liability shall not exceed the highest applicable limit for any one car.
b. When two or more cars are insured by this policy, the policy terms apply separately to each car. . . .
The parties disputed the amount of UIM coverage available to Grimstad-Hardy, and Mutual of Enumclaw filed a declaratory judgment action in King County Superior Court. Grimstad-Hardy asserted she should be able to recover the $200,000 per accident limit for her injuries rather than the $100,000 per person limit. Grimstad-Hardy also argued that she could stack UIM coverage for all three vehicles, thus receiving total coverage of $600,000. Both parties moved fo
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