Author: Nancy Germond
In our three-part series on this case, we began with Part 1 and a look by Chris Boggs at the original case of the sexual transmission of HPV after unprotected sex in an automobile. In his article, which insurance Journal later picked up for reprint, Boggs describes the critical fact that if a claim does not make it past the policy's insuring agreement, there is no coverage. As he notes in his reciting of the ISO personal auto policy, any bodily injury or property damage (in this case, the former, because forms can also describe injury as illness), must arise out of “an auto accident."
Consensual sex in a car is not an accident, no matter how you dress it up (sorry, the puns keep writing themselves, folks). The GEICO policy, as outlined by Tim Dodge in his Part 2 article on this subject posted after Boggs' article, notes the following. The GEICO policy which may have been the one in this matter, Dodge was unsure because of the lack of form facts, does not contain the key term regarding injury or illness “because of an auto accident."
The thrust of both articles is that the devil is in the details: The policy form. Both authors highlight the critical need for insurance agents to familiarize themselves with policy language, because the coverages we sell as agents are dependent on the policy forms we present to our insureds.
As of this writing, the Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed the decision, so GEICO is now appealing to Federal court. The court expects a jury trial to begin in October 2022.
According to a 2020 article in Risk & Insurance, the surplus lines market has had “impressive growth" for the past three years. It is not slowing down. Insurance carriers today reject risks they might have written in the past, and we know that surplus lines forms can deviate significantly from ISO forms or standard market proprietary forms.
As we say so frequently, insurance is not a commodity. To compete with those marketing gurus who can spin a simple click into the best coverage, we must continually sell the importance of selecting the best insurance coverage for the client's unique needs without exposing (groan) ourselves to errors and omissions claims.
This case has certainly found traction in the Missouri courts. The case reminds us again of the importance of reading the forms we sell.
First published: July 8, 2022