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Hobbs v. Ryce

Minor plaintiff, who lived at home and was injured in a car accident, was bound by the limited tort selection his father had made on his insurance policy and could only recover pain and suffering if it was determined, on re-trial, that he suffered a serious injury.

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� 1 We decide, inter alia, whether a parent’s limited tort election applies to a minor residing with his parents, and whether the trial court properly applied sections 1711 (a) and 1722 of the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law (MVFRL) to reduce a verdict for medical expenses to zero.

�2 This action involved a motor vehicle accident. Plaintiff Robert Hobbs, who at the time of the accident was sixteen years old and living with his parents, sued for personal injuries. Hobbs was a passenger sitting in the rear of a vehicle driven by defendant Kevin Ryce. Ryce conceded liability, and the matter went to trial on causation and damages only. The jury determined that Ryce was causally negligent, and awarded Hobbs $3,000 in medical expenses. The jury did not award Hobbs any amount for pain and suffering or wage loss, although evidence was presented on these claims.

� 3 Post trial motions were filed by both parties. Ryce sought to reduce the verdict to zero, arguing that the MVFRL, 75 Pa.C.S. �� 1711 (a) and 1722, require that an injured insured recover the first $5,000 in medical expenses from his own insurer. The trial court granted this motion. The trial court also considered Hobbs’s post trial motion requesting a new trial on damages because the jury’s verdict on pain and suffering and wage loss was against the weight of the evidence. The trial court agreed, and granted a new trial limited to a determination of damages. Finally, the trial court denied Ryce’s motion that in a new trial Hobbs should be bound by the limited tort selection made by his father on his insurance policy. We have before us the parties’ cross-appeals from the trial court’s disposition of the parties’ post trial motions. We affirm in part and reverse and remand in part.

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