Hardwick v. Bublitz

• Decision Date: 17 October 1961
• Docket Number: No. 50399,50399
• Parties: George W. HARDWICK, Jr., a minor, by Leona Bartz, his mother and next friend, Appellant, v. Darrell A. BUBLITZ, Harold Bublitz and Lucille Bublitz, Appellee.
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

Page 309

111 N.W.2d 309

253 Iowa 49

George W. HARDWICK, Jr., a minor, by Leona Bartz, his mother and next friend, Appellant, v. Darrell A. BUBLITZ, Harold Bublitz and Lucille Bublitz, Appellee.

No. 50399.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

Oct. 17, 1961.

Floyd Ensign, Northwood, and Westfall, Laird & Burington, Mason City, for appellant.

Pappas & Senneff, Mason City, for appellees.

LARSON, Justice.

The defendant owner of a certain automobile permitted his brother Dean, age 14, its use on November 10, 1958. The plaintiff was one of the passengers in the car Dean was driving when it went out of control, wrecked, and caused him serious injury.

Division II of plaintiff's petition sought recovery against the owner, Darrell A. Bublitz, upon the theory that he permitted a person not authorized under the law to drive his car in violation of Section 321.220, Code of Iowa 1958, I.C.A., and that the accident happened as a result of that violation by the owner and the negligence of the driver, Dean Bublitz.

Division IV of his petition seeks to hold the owner liable under common law for entrusting the operation of his automobile to an inexperienced or incompetent driver, alleging that negligence of the owner was a proximate cause of the accident.

The trial court held, in substance, that the owner was entitled to the protection of the guest statute and therefore the allegations of negligence on behalf of the driver did not state a cause of action in either count, and dismissed them. The sole error relied upon for reversal is the court's sustaining of the owner's motion to dismiss Counts II and IV, and comes to us under leave to appeal under Rule 332, 58 I.C.A. We find no error.

I. Plaintiff, in his Brief Point I, contends any violation of Section 321.220, being negligence per se, and any entrustment of a motor vehicle by the owner to an incompetent or inexperienced driver in violation of a common-law duty, imposes liability upon the owner for injuries sustained by any person resulting from the negligent operation of the vehicle by the unqualified, inexperienced or incompetent driver.

We considered this general proposition in the case of Krausnick v. Haegg Roofing Co., 236 Iowa 985, 20 N.W.2d 432, 434, 163 A.L.R. 1413. There the plaintiff alleged, as a ground of negligence, that the defendant company permitted its employee to drive its truck when it knew that he was in the habit of becoming intoxicated, and on that occasion knew he had been drinking and was not competent to drive. We classified the negligence under those conditions as common-law negligence and not under the usual theory of master and servant, nor under the statute (Section 321.219) making the owner of the truck liable for its negligent operation. We said in cases of that kind that liability rests 'upon the combined negligence of the owner and the driver, the owner's negligence consisting in the act of loaning the car to an incompetent driver and the latter's negligence in its operation. Lufty v. Lockhart, supra (37 Ariz. 488, 295 P. 975); * * * it seems to be well established as a common law proposition and we must hold it is in effect here unless it has been abrogated by statute.' (Emphasis supplied.) Defendant herein contends it has been abrogated by the provisions of the guest statute, Section 321.494, Code of Iowa 1958, I.C.A.

Defendant concedes, as he must, that if the guest statute does not apply, the negligence of the owner Darrell herein would probably become a jury question and the dismissal of Counts II and IV would have been erroneous. Here he challenges the relevancy of authorities that do not involve guests, as defined in that statute. He contends, when owner negligence occurs, the Iowa guest statute provides very clearly and specifically that the owner as well as the operator of a motor vehicle shall not be liable to the guest unless the damages were caused as a result of driver intoxication or his reckless operation of the automobile.

Section 321.494, Code of 1958, I.C.A., the so-called 'guest statute', provides as follows: 'The owner or operator of a motor vehicle shall not be liable for any damages to any passenger or person riding in said motor vehicle as a guest or by invitation and not for hire unless damage is caused as a result of the driver of said motor vehicle being under the influence of intoxicating liquor or because of the reckless operation by him of such motor vehicle.'

As we understand plaintiff, he concedes the guest statute protects the owner and the operator, but maintains it protects only for negligence arising out of the operation of the motor vehicle, not for negligence of an owner in entrusting his vehicle to one unlicensed or incompetent to drive the car. Were it not for the rather clear and allinclusive language used in that statute, we could almost agree with appellant's contention, for it has considerable logic and might well be the object of such legislation. However, there is nothing in our guest statute that even hints at such an exception to complete protection for the owner or operator. The courts cannot decide how far such protection should be extended. That is a legislative function. True, the liability imposed therein is predicated upon the driver's operation, but like responsibility is placed on both owner and operator. There is merit in defendant's contention that the protection afforded by that statute, like the liability imposed by it, is inclusive; that regardlees of how liability is said to have arisen, the owner or operator of a motor vehicle is relieved of that liability to a guest unless the damages were caused as a result of driver intoxication or recklessness. This 'unless' clause appears to be the only exception, and it clearly relates to the liability of the parties, not only to the driver. Being so spelled out in the statute, it would indeed seem to be reading something into the statute that is not there to hold that the owner or operator shall only receive protection in guest cases from operational negligence. We are satisfied that if such had been the legislative intent, it could easily have so said, and if that is its desire it can do so in the future.

II. The problem then appears to be as to the proper interpretation and application of the so-called guest statute, Section 321.494, Code of Iowa 1958, I.C.A., as it relates to the protection of the individual or individuals thereunder. Our most recent recognition of the protection afforded an owner under that statute was Murray v. Lang, Iowa, 106 N.W.2d 643, at page 648, where we said: 'The rider, be he owner or a total stranger, has the burden of removing himself therefrom (the provisions of the guest statute) if he is to recover for negligent operation alone', and holding both the owner and the operator were 'one of the protected parties under the statute.' Thus while it is true that the specific question raised in this appeal has not previously been before us, we have frequently considered this section of our Code. However, the issues then involved were as to the definition of a guest, recklessness, or as to the application of those definitions to the myriad statements of fact presented. The exact issue raised by plaintiff's petition and defendant's motion to strike has never been considered or passed upon by us, although such questions appear to have been occasionally raised in other jurisdictions. We sahall refer to them later. We first recognize serveral general rules of construction applicable here.

The cardinal rule so universally acknowledged that it needs no citation is that if a statute is susceptible to more than one reasonable interpretation or application, then the court will be constrained to give to it the interpretation or application which will lead to a logical rather than an illogical result. It is the application of that rule which has lead almost all jurisdictions having similar statutes to the result we adopt here. Another rule which needs no citation of authority is that where the words of the statute make clear its meaning, ther is no cause for judicial construction, and a third rule is that unless statutes are in direct conflict they will be read together and, if at all possible, harmonized.

The purpose of our guest statute, we have previously said, was 'to protect automobile drivers and owners from claims made by persons who were riding in the motor vehicle as a guest, or by invitation and not for hire, except * * *.' (Emphasis supplied.) Sullivan v. Harris, 224 Iowa 345, 358, 276 N.W. 88, 94. It is interesting to note, we also said in the Sullivan case, that the guest statute 'should be liberally construed to effectuate this purpose, and not construed as the rule would be without section 64 (now Section 4.2).' That section, of course, provides, regardless of the rule that statutes in derogation of the common law shall be strictly construed, that the provisions in our Code shall be constured liberally with a view of providing its objects. Thus it seems we have already taken the position that the underlying purpose of the legislation in Section 321.494, which appeared in its present form first in the Code of 1931 as Section 5026.b1, was to place a safeguard against the prevalent claims for damages by guests or mere invitees 'around the owner and operator of the car.' Knutson v. Lurie, 217 Iowa 192, 195, 251 N.W. 147, 149. It was pointed out in the Knuston case that although in the transportation of the guest or the mere invitee, no fare of any kind was asked by the owner or operator, yet the guest and invitee, without gratitude frequently commenced suit on every conceivable charge of negligence. It has also been said that such legislation was to protect the owner and driver from claims of hitchhikers or others invited to ride as a courtesy who then make large claims based on minor acts of negligence against the Good Samaritan, that since insurance has become almost compulsory, it is to prevent collusion...