Court Opinion

ID: 9593971
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 00:26:02.012218+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:01:22.475012
License: Public Domain

DISSENTING ON DENIAL OF PETITION FOR REHEARING
BISTLINE, Justice,
dissenting on denial of petition for rehearing.
Out of fairness to the litigants, and to further the quality of justice, appellate courts as a matter of course address the arguments raised by the parties. It would not be an overstatement to say that it is indeed an obligation of an appellate court. The Court s opinion m this case, however, has masqueraded the basic issue.
The opinion for the Court states that the sole question is whether Hammon v. Farmers Insurance, 109 Idaho 286, 707 P.2d 397 (1985), should be overruled. Not necessarily so. Here, unlike Hammon, plaintiff did allege facts establishing independent corroboration of the existence of a phantom vehicle, namely, a disinterested eyewitness who saw the accident from his home on Powers Avenue in Lewiston. Plaintiffs asked not what can this Court do for plaintiff, but what can the Court do for the administration of justice. The plaintiffs’ request is not for the overruling of Hammon. The issue squarely presented is whether independent corroboration is sufficient to obviate the need for proof of a “physical contact” requirement. The hypothesis is simple; such independent proof if accepted by the jury or other trier of the fact, does away with the worry over fraudulent claims, which has been said to be the very reason for the physical contact rule. This question goes unanswered by the majority, notwithstanding the fact that plaintiffs clearly raised the issue in their initial brief.1
In sum, while continuing to adhere to the view that Hammon was incorrectly decided, my vote is to grant rehearing after which we can collegially determine whether independent corroboration vitiates the physical contact rule, and if not, produce a rule of logic which will serve as guidance to the insurance-purchasing public and those in the insurance-writing industry.

. Appellants' Brief, at 9, provides:
It is clear that the underlying purpose of the physical contact rule is to hedge against the fraudulent claims. In situations where a person has negligently driven off the road and tries to claim that he was forced off by another vehicle in an attempt to collect insurance, there is justification for the physical contact requirement. However, where a plaintiff can prove independently that a phantom vehicle did exist and that his injuries are the result of the negligence of the phantom driver, then the physical contact rule serves no purpose. In the situation where the plaintiff is not attempting to defraud the insurer and can prove another vehicle caused the accident, then the physical contact rule only penalizes an innocent party.