Court Opinion

ID: 9885061
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-10-06 03:28:49.509751+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:48:43.618681
License: Public Domain

SEDGWICK, Judge
(dissenting).
I respectfully dissent. The Commercial Standard Insurance Company policy issued to Rusthoven contained two conflicting provisions. One permits stacking and one does not. This creates an ambiguity.
It is well settled that ambiguities in the language of an insurance policy should be construed against the insurer as drafter of the policy. It is also well settled that policy provisions are to be interpreted in accord with what a reasonable person in the position of the insured would have understood the terms to mean. Farmers Home Mutual Insurance Co. v. Lill, 332 N.W.2d 635 (Minn.1983).
Commercial Standard argues that if there is an ambiguity, the only reasonable way to read the policy is to first read the endorsement which precludes stacking the policies, then disregard the endorsement which allows for stacking of uninsured motorist benefits.
This argument is unreasonable. Any reasonable person named as an insured in a policy will read the entire policy to see if the policy provisions allow for a complete satisfaction of claims.
In Boroos v. Roseau Agency, Inc., 345 N.W.2d 788 (Minn.Ct.App.1984), this court allowed the stacking of uninsured motorist benefits. In that case the policy contained only one endorsement relating to uninsured motorist limits which used language similar to the provision allowing stacking here.
The trial court interpreted that language to mean the insurance company intended to provide coverage up to the limits on all covered autos. The court found this consistent with Minnesota public policy.
Commercial Standard argues Boroos is distinguishable because here there was only one premium paid for uninsured motorist coverage based on gross receipts of the leasing business. In Boroos if optional uninsured motorist coverage had been offered by the insurer as required by law, the insurer would have based the premium for that coverage on a per-vehicle cost.
This difference in premium computation is irrelevant once it is established that the Commercial Standard policy, by its own terms, provides for stacking of uninsured motorist coverage.
Therefore, the trial court erred in ruling that Commercial Standard’s underinsured motorist benefits could not be stacked.