Opinion ID: 146624
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Repeated Use

Text: One approach in deciding whether an accident site other than a residence premises was an insured location under a homeowner's policy is to look for repeated use of the site by the insured. See, e.g., Allstate Ins. Co. v. Drumheller, 185 Fed. Appx. 152, 158 (3d Cir.2006) (non-precedential) ([W]e do not believe that the precise physical relationship of [the residence premises to the accident site] is the crucial inquiry.... We think that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court would follow [the] holding that `in connection with' means the repeated use of the ATV emanating from and returning to the insured's residence.); Farmers New Century Ins. Co. v. Angerson, No. 4:04-cv-2608, 2008 WL 238622, at  (M.D.Pa. Jan. 22, 2008) (ATV accident site, a field half a mile away from residence premises, was an insured location used in connection with the residence premises since there was frequent use of the area in which the accident occurred); Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co. v. Prevatte, 108 N.C.App. 152, 156, 423 S.E.2d 90, 92 (1992) (ATV accident on a trail leading from insured's property and ending on a neighbor's property covered because the trail was used regularly by the insured for several years to ride ATVs and for walking, and thus was used in connection with insured's residence premises). But, even if adopted conceptually, subsidiary questions here too can produce conflicting coverage scenarios. Most broadly, if repeated use by the Kings of some part of Midwood Road were to suffice, the homeowner's policy would cover the accident injuring Conor. Yet coverage may not exist if the repeated use inquiry is geographically or functionally limited either to the specific portion of Midwood Road where the ATV accident occurred, or if focused specifically on the Kings' use of their ATV on the roadway (as opposed to their use of other motor vehicles or nonvehicular usage). The overall geography is not disputed. Deer Park Court, the street where the Kings live, runs in an east-west direction and dead-ends at its eastern extremity. The western end of Deer Park Court forms a T intersection with Midwood Road. Midwood Road runs in a north-south direction and dead-ends at its northern end. The southern end of Midwood Road forms a T intersection with Deer Park Meadow Road, which leads to the Deer Park development's gate and the public road. As the record reflects, this road configuration limited the regular automobile use of Midwood Road by the Kings to its southern portion, that is, the stretch leading to and from the housing development's connection point with the public road. The Kings do not allege, and the record does not indicate, that they repeatedly (or ever) drove any vehicle on the northern portion of Midwood Road, where the ATV accident occurred. There is also no basis to find that any of the Kings ever used the subject ATV on Midwood Road at all prior to the May 5, 2002, accident; nor that Midwood Road was ever used by them for other nonvehicular purposes. If the repeated use definition is to be adopted, guidance on the pertinence of these subsidiary points is also requested.