Turner v. Gateway Ins. Co.

The trial court lacked power to increase the amount of liability coverage contained in the existing insurer's policy from $100K per person injured and $300K per incident, even if the insured was federally mandated to carry $5K in insurance as an interstate transporter of passengers.

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In this civil action arising out of a motor vehicle accident, James Turner and his wife filed suit against M.B. Transportation Company, two of its employees, and Gateway Insurance Company “Gateway” for injuries sustained by Turner while being transported by M.B. Transportation. The Turners now appeal the denial of their motion for partial summary judgment, which sought to increase the liability coverage limits contained in M.B. Transportation’s policy with Gateway and further appeal the grant of summary judgment to Gateway on that same issue, arguing that the trial court erred in finding that federal law did not mandate reforming the policy to increase the coverage limits. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm. Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. OCGA § 9-11-56 c; Britt v. Kelly & Picerne, Inc. 1 “On appeal from the grant or denial of a motion for summary judgment, we review the evidence de novo, and all reasonable conclusions and inferences drawn from the evidence are construed in the light most favorable to the nonmovant.” McCaskill v. Carillo .2

So construed, the evidence shows that M.B. Transportation is a motor carrier for hire that is primarily engaged in the business of transporting individuals to various medical facilities throughout Georgia. On occasion, M.B. Transportation also transports individuals from neighboring states to medical facilities within Georgia. In the early morning hours of March 10, 2005, M.B. Transportation was transporting James Turner from his home in Ashburn, Georgia to the VA Medical Center in Decatur when the van, in which he was a passenger, was involved in an accident. As a result of this accident, Turner suffered serious injuries.

Turner v. Gateway Ins. Co.

The trial court lacked power to increase the amount of liability coverage contained in the existing insurer's policy from $100K per person injured and $300K per incident, even if the insured was federally mandated to carry $5K in insurance as an interstate transporter of passengers.

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