Jackson vs Wisconsin County Mutual, Decided 6/10/14 by the Wisconsin Supreme Court
On the day of the accident, Rachelle Jackson was on duty as a Milwaukee County Sheriff Deputy directing traffic at the Milwaukee airport. She was about to direct the driver of a car when she walked in front of that car to check for oncoming traffic. The driver of that car pulled forward and struck Ms. Jackson.
She presented an under-insured motorist claim to the County’s commercial automobile policy. Wisconsin County Mutual disputed coverage and this lawsuit began.
The policy pays sums owed by an under-insured motorist to an insured person who is injured “using an automobile within the scope of his or her employment or authority.”
The policy defines “using” by the meaning set forth in Wisconsin Statute § 632.32(c) (2), which defines “using” to “include driving, operating, manipulating, riding in and any other use.”
Jackson argued that she was directing the driver of the car into traffic, and that this constituted “manipulating” or was making some “other use” of the car.
Prior cases have granted coverage to persons directing a car. In those cases, the actual driver is really acting under the direction and control of the person directing them. In those cases, the person directing the car is “manipulating” the car, which constitutes “use”, and coverage was granted.
In Ms. Jackson’s case, she had not yet started directing the car into traffic. Therefore, she was not yet “manipulating” or “using” it by definition. The Court found that she was not entitled to under-insured motorist coverage under this set of facts.
Comments:
Had Ms. Jackson started to motion for the car to pull forward, it seems she would have met the definition of “use” and been granted coverage.
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