Court Opinion

ID: 9703272
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 23:48:23.011064+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:21:46.989775
License: Public Domain

DEL SOLE, Judge,
dissenting.
I dissent from the Majority’s decision to affirm the trial court’s grant of Judgment on the Pleadings in favor of Appellee, Transamerica Insurance Company, and against Appellant, a named insured under the Transamerica policy. I do not believe that Appellant was seeking to “stack” the benefits under the Transamerica policy with those he obtained under a policy issued by Allstate Insurance Company. Because Appellant did not seek to add the total benefits available under one policy to the total benefits available under a second policy, but instead sought contribution from two carriers providing coverage under separate policies, he was not engaged in “stacking” and did not violate the provisions of 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 1717.
The concept of stacking as been part of our jurisprudence for a number of years. In Harleysville Mutual Casualty Co. v. Blumling, 429 Pa. 389, 241 A.2d 112 (1968), the court sought to determine whether anti-stacking clauses violated the purpose behind the Uninsured Motorist Act. The court, which permitted such recovery, described stacking.
We do hold, however, ... that where the loss exceeds the limits of one policy, the insured may proceed under other available policies up to their individual limits or to the amount of the actual loss.
Id. at 395-396, 241 A.2d at 115.
Thus, stacking, as the term implies, is the piling of benefits available under separate policies until they total the amount of the loss or the policy limits. In this case if Appellant were permitted to recover the $10,000 of medical expense benefits provided under the Allstate policy and the $100,000 available under the Transamerica policy for a total of $110,-000, he would be stacking benefits in violation of § 1717. However Appellant may receive some coverage under each policy without engaging in stacking by collecting benefits in *262a pro rata fashion. This contribution is what Appellant desires and should be able to achieve under the MVFRL.
The ability to collect pro rata contributions from both Allstate and Transamerica should be permitted in this case because both carriers are at equal priority levels. Section 1713 of the MVFRL sets forth the priority levels for collection of multiple sources of benefits. It provides, in relevant part:
§ 1713 Source of benefits
(a) General rule.—Except as provided in section 1714 (relating to ineligible claimants), a person who suffers injury arising out of the maintenance or use of a motor vehicle shall recover first party benefits against applicable insurance coverage in the following order of priority: (1) For a named insured, the policy on which he is the named insured.
Appellant was a named insured under both the Allstate and the Transamerica policies, thus both carriers are at the same priority level with regard to a claim by Appellant for first party benefits. Subsection (b) of section 1713 refers to situations where there exist multiple sources at the same priority level. It states:
(b) Multiple sources of equal priority.—The insurer against whom a claim is asserted first under the priorities
set forth in subsection (a) shall process and pay the claim as if wholly responsible. The insurer is thereafter entitled to recover contribution pro rata from any other insurer for the benefits paid and the costs of processing the claim____
Under this section, had Appellant initially applied to recover benefits from Transamerica it would have been required to pay up to the $100,000 policy limits for the medical expenses which Appellant was able to prove he incurred. Section 1713(b) would then permit Transamerica to recoup up to $10,000 from Allstate for its pro rata share. In this case, however, Appellant made his first claim against Allstate, the insurer with the lower medical cover*263age limits. Allstate did as required and paid the claim as if wholly responsible up to the limits of its coverage, $10,000 for medicals and $50,000 for income loss. Since Allstate provided a greater amount of coverage than Transamerica for income loss, it would be able to seek contribution from Transamerica for its pro rata share up to $15,000. The trial court found that in this situation Transamerica would not be responsible for any contribution for medical expenses because such recovery would amount to stacking. I disagree.
As I have stated, and as section 1713(b) demonstrates, recovery from more than one carrier at the same level of priority does not constitute stacking, if each carrier contributes their pro rata share. In Laguna v. Erie Ins. Group, 370 Pa.Super. 308, 536 A.2d 419 (1988), the court recognized the ability to recover from more than one source if each is at the same priority level. The Laguna court also found that such contribution is not available where there exist insurers at different priority levels. The court remarked:
The provision of § 1713(b) regarding procedures to be followed in the event of multiple sources of coverage is limited to sources of equal priority. Since the statute explicitly treats the issue of multiple sources of coverage among insurers of equal priority, its silence regarding insurers at different priority levels indicates that contribution in this context is not an issue. The logical interpretation of the limitation of § 1713(b) to insurers at an equal priority level is that insureds are not entitled to benefits from multiple sources at different priority levels.
Id. at 536 A.2d 421.
Although section 1713(b) details what is to occur when a claim is first made against one of multiple parties responsible at the same level, it presupposes that the first claim is made against the carrier which is providing the greater coverage. In a situation such as this where one carrier is providing greater medical expense coverage and another is providing greater income loss coverage, what course should the insured take? Which coverage should the insured seek *264to obtain first at the risk of losing the other coverage? I believe that the statute did not intend to create such a dilemma with such a potentially inequitable result. It would be arbitrary to limit an insured’s recovery to the limits of the policy to which the first application was made when there exist more than one policy at the same priority level. It should make no difference whether the insured proceeds against the carrier with the higher limits first, second or third as long as each carrier contributes to the insured their pro rata share so that the insured in compensated up to the limits of the highest coverage he or she purchased. In a case such as this, Allstate would be responsible for Vio of Appellant’s medicals up to $10,000 with Transamerica responsible for paying up to $90,000 or 9/io of the established medical expenses. Likewise if a wage loss claim was established at or over $50,000, Appellant could seek 3/io of the recovery from Transamerica up to $15,000 and Vio or $35,000 from Allstate. Such recovery is not stacking since the policy limits are not added one on top of the other, but rather are combined, each in a proportionate share, to provide the insured with the maximum limits of coverage which he or she purchased in a single policy.
In the case before us, Appellant purchased two policies at equal priority levels; one providing coverage of $100,000 for medical expenses, another providing $10,000 for the same expenses. In my view, Appellant is entitled to seek to recover the full amount of coverage which he purchased, $100,000. Since Allstate has already paid Appellant its $10,000 share, Transamerica may remain responsible up to $90,000 for medical expenses. With regard to income losses, Allstate has paid its $50,000 limits and may seek contribution from Transamerica for its $15,000 policy limits. The result I suggest does what § 1713(b) was designed to do and permits an insured to recover the full amount of the highest coverage available from multiple insurers at the same priority level, while not jeopardizing the insured’s recovery based upon his or her election of against which carrier the claim is first presented.
*265In conclusion I would hold that the trial court erred in entering a Judgment on the Pleadings. I would reverse and remand this matter for further proceedings.