Finney v. Farmers Ins. Co., 45946

• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Washington
• Writing for the Court: DOLLIVER; UTTER
• Citation: 92 Wn.2d 748,600 P.2d 1272
• Decision Date: 11 October 1979
• Docket Number: No. 45946,45946
• Parties: Ralph C. FINNEY and Charlene Finney, husband and wife, Individually, and Ralph C. Finney, Personal Representative of the Estate of Robin Colleen Finney, Respondents, v. FARMERS INSURANCE CO. of Washington, a corporation, and Mid-Century Insurance Company, a corporation, Petitioners, Aetna Casualty & Surety Co., Respondent.

Page 748

92 Wn.2d 748 600 P.2d 1272 Ralph C. FINNEY and Charlene Finney, husband and wife,
Individually, and Ralph C. Finney, Personal
Representative of the Estate of Robin
Colleen Finney, Respondents,
v.
FARMERS INSURANCE CO. of Washington, a corporation, and
Mid-Century Insurance Company, a corporation, Petitioners,
Aetna Casualty & Surety Co., Respondent. No. 45946. Supreme Court of Washington, En Banc. Oct. 11, 1979.

Page 749

[600 P.2d 1274] Halverson, Applegate & McDonald, Walter G. Meyer, Jr., Yakima, for petitioners.

Fortier & Baker, Inc., P. S., Mark R. Fortier, G. William Baker, Gavin, Robinson, Kendrick & Mays, William H. Mays, Yakima, for respondents.

DOLLIVER, Judge.

Plaintiffs' daughter Robin was killed in a car accident in 1973. The car in which she was riding was driven by Norman Cornelius, Jr., and owned by Randall Wood, who was also a passenger. The car crossed the center line and collided head on with another automobile. All three occupants of the subject car were killed; all three were minors. Two occupants of the other car were killed and five persons were seriously injured.

The Finneys were insured by Mid-Century Insurance Company, a member of Farmers Insurance Group. The Cornelius family was insured by State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, and the Wood family was insured by Aetna Casualty and Surety Company.

At the time of the accident, the car was registered to one Monty Bak. He had sold the car to Randall Wood 5 days before the accident. The certificate of title had been endorsed to Wood, but he had never completed a registration and ownership certificate.

Page 750

Plaintiffs instituted a wrongful death action against the estates of Norman Cornelius, Jr., and Randall Wood. A settlement and covenant not to sue was executed with the Cornelius estate. The $15,000 payment to plaintiffs was made by State Farm which disbursed the total amount of the Cornelius policy to plaintiffs, the injured parties, and personal representatives of deceased occupants of the other car involved in the collision. The document expressly reserved all claims against the other parties. Judgment against Wood's estate was entered in the amount of $45,837.95 after trial of the wrongful death action. Aetna denied coverage, so plaintiffs were never able to collect on the judgment.

Plaintiffs then instituted this action against Farmers to recover under the uninsured motorist provisions of two policies issued to them. They sought the maximum amount of the combined policies ($30,000), plus funeral expenses, interest and attorney fees. Farmers denied liability and filed a third-party complaint against Aetna. All parties moved for summary judgment. The trial court dismissed the third-party complaint and entered judgment for plaintiffs in the amount of $30,837.95, plus interest. The Court of Appeals affirmed. Finney v. Farmers Ins. Co., 21 Wash.App. 601, 586 P.2d 519 (1978). We granted Farmers' petition for review and consider two issues discussed in the opinion of the Court of Appeals. The remaining issues raised by petitioner either have been thoroughly and adequately addressed by the comprehensive opinion of the Court of Appeals or have been abandoned by petitioner for lack of citation of authority. In re Marriage of Croley, 91 Wash.2d 288, 588 P.2d 738 (1978). We affirm the decision of the trial court and the Court of Appeals.

Protection against uninsured motorists is required in this state. RCW 48.22.030 provides:

(N)o new policy or renewal . . . shall be . . . issued . . . unless coverage is provided therein . . . for the protection of persons . . . who are legally entitled to recover

Page 751

damages from owners or operators of uninsured motor vehicles . . .

The statute does not define "uninsured motor vehicle", but Farmers' insurance policy defines it as:

(A) land motor vehicle . . . with respect to the ownership, maintenance or use of which there is . . . no bodily injury liability insurance or bond applicable at the time of the accident . . .

[600 P.2d 1275] The first question we consider is whether a vehicle is "uninsured" within the meaning of the statute and the policy where the operator has liability insurance, but the owner does not. Farmers contends plaintiffs can recover under the uninsured motorist clause of their policy only if both the owner and operator of the offending car are uninsured. Since Cornelius had insurance from State Farm, Farmers asserts that plaintiffs cannot recover under...