Ask PIA

Symbols: your key to what’s covered

Under the Business Auto Policy, could you discuss the difference between using Symbol 1, as compared to Symbols 7, 8 and 9, to indicate whether coverage applies?

Federal electronic-driving device rule for truckers

Our clients are talking about a new electronic-driving device rule for motor carriers. Can you give us some information on this?

No-fault: out-of-state PIP

We wrote a business auto policy for a law firm. One partner, who normally drives a corporate-owned vehicle, was injured while a passenger in a friend’s car. The friend’s vehicle is insured and garaged in Florida, where the accident occurred. The partner sold her individually owned vehicle several months ago and dropped her personal auto policy without notifying our agency. Where can the partner get personal injury protection coverage for her injuries?

Self-insurance

How can someone become a self-insurer for motor vehicle insurance? What’s involved?

PIP for employee's spouse

We insure a corporate-owned vehicle, classed 7391, on a commercial auto policy. To get Broadened Personal Injury Protection and Additional PIP, does the spouse have to be listed, or is coverage automatic for the spouse, as it would be with drive-other-car coverage? We've gotten conflicting answers from our carriers.

Symbol 1—named insured

My client owns a vehicle scheduled on a personal auto policy. He also has a business auto policy naming him as an individual with covered autos designated as Symbol 1. Will the BAP cover this client while operating the vehicle scheduled on the PAP?

Drive-other-car coverage

My insured submitted a claim on a commercial automobile policy. The insured doesn’t have a personal automobile policy, because their four cars are corporately owned. Their 16-year-old daughter with a driving permit was driving a friend’s parents home in the friend’s car and totaled the car. The car did not have collision coverage. Can this loss be covered under my insured’s commercial automobile policy?

Temporary substitutes

My client has a furnished auto and does not have a personal auto policy. Will the business auto policy cover a temporary substitute auto, if needed?

Primary or excess?

An employee of our commercial auto policyholder had an accident in his personal vehicle. Our policyholder has two policies through two different companies. Company A’s policy is rated based on Symbol 1, making any auto (including hired and nonowned) a covered auto. The second policy, written by Company B, provides liability coverage for nonowned and hired vehicles only. We would like the claim to be paid by Company B, because Company B’s coverage is more specific to the claim. But Company B says no, the loss should be split, one-half with Company A and one-half with Company B. How should this claim be apportioned?

PIP coverage—Broadened PIP

How do you insure a corporate officer who has no personal auto policy?

Borrowed motorcycle

On a commercial auto policy, if a customer borrows a motorcycle that is owned by a corporation (named insured) and is involved in an accident, is the motorcycle considered “any auto” (Symbol 1)?

Step-down provision

I think I am correct that if a passenger in a commercial vehicle has an uninsured motorist claim, that the maximum limits recoverable under the commercial auto policy step down to the limits that would be available on the injured party’s personal auto, but what if the personal auto limits are greater?

Underinsured motorists physical damage

My client was driving a truck carrying $18,000 worth of cabinetry when struck by another vehicle whose driver was at fault. The vehicle is insured by the at-fault driver with low limits, which likely will not be enough to compensate my client for his truck and the cabinetry damaged, since a bridge and telephone pole also were damaged in the accident. Will New Jersey uninsured motorists coverage pay for the damages, including the cabinetry?

Coverage for valet parking

I was wondering what coverage issues arise when I permit a valet-parking attendant to drive my vehicle. If there is an accident, how will my policy respond to liability for bodily injury and property damage? How will the business owner’s policy respond? How will the parking attendant’s policy respond?

Commercial auto—suspension of coverage

When using ISO form CA 02 40—Suspension of Coverage, will an additional premium be issued once the suspension period is over? Would the insured still have defense in the event one of their vehicles that is suspended for coverage is stolen and there is a loss with that vehicle and we are brought into a lawsuit?

Corporate-owned vehicle

Can a corporate-owned auto (or LLC-owned auto) be insured under a personal auto policy or must it be insured under a business auto policy?

Stated amount

An antique auto insured under a business auto policy was stolen. The amount the insurer offered was less than the stated value. Is this correct?

UM/UIM coverage; step-down provision; Drive Other Car endorsement

When an employee is scheduled on the Drive Other Car—Broadened Coverage For Named Individuals (CA 99 10) endorsement, does the uninsured and underinsured motorists(UM/UIM) coverage apply to that person as though they were a named insured, thereby, avoiding the impact of the “step-down” provision? If so, which vehicles would this apply to?

Hired and nonowned vs. drive-other-car coverage

Does drive-other-car coverage typically cover “hired and nonowned”-type vehicles? If I am a company employee, with a corporate vehicle, but no personal auto insurance, and I rent a vehicle or the business rents a vehicle, am I covered in both scenarios?

BAP coverage for trailer owned by corporate officer

Our corporate client wants to pull an officer-owned trailer having a load capacity of less than 3,000 pounds behind a corporate-owned commercial vehicle. Will there be coverage for this trailer under the Business Auto Coverage Form (CA 00 01)? We weren’t sure since the trailer is owned by an individual and not the corporation.

Tort options for commercial auto

I wrote a business auto policy for a corporation owning a private-passenger-type auto and requested the “no limit on lawsuit” no-fault option. The insurer responded, stating: “Only individuals can select the no limitation on lawsuit option. Since the insured is not an individual, the policy will be issued with the limitation on lawsuit option.” Is this true? Please explain and identify the law that states this position.

Vehicle liability for individual co-signer on a business lease

I have a commercial insurance client who recently co-leased a vehicle in both the name of his company and an individual who does not have ownership in the company (basically, a friend doing him a favor). The underwriter for the insurer says that both names need to be listed as named insureds on the business auto policy. However, the insurer will not do this unless the individual has a majority interest in the business. I would think some sort of additional insured endorsement could be used to solve this, but the underwriter says it will not work. Do you know of any other possible solution?

Loss of use

A client purchases an ISO Business Auto Policy with physical damage coverage. How would you describe its provisions for the loss-of-use coverage?

Garage employee's use of owner's commercial vehicle

My client has a fleet of commercial vehicles. The garage where the owner gets these vehicles repaired/maintained comes to the owner’s place of business and picks them up to take them to the garage. If the garage employee gets in an accident while driving the owner’s vehicle to the garage, whose policy responds to the liability portion of this claim?

Excluding drivers

Our agency staff had a commercial-lines meeting and were discussing whether insurers in New Jersey can exclude certain drivers on their policies. Someone advised that insurers cannot exclude certain drivers by law. Someone else advised that they can, if they have filed their own forms. What is the truth in this matter?

Commercial auto—care, custody and control

Our insured has a fleet of vehicles, one of which is the owner’s truck. In the evening it is driven home and parked in the driveway.

The owner and his spouse have a personal auto policy. Our insured’s spouse backed that car out of the garage and into the side of our insured’s truck.

The car incurred $1,500 in damage and the truck incurred $3,500 in damage. The claims adjuster for the car is denying coverage for the property damage to the corporate-owned truck, claiming that the truck being parked in the driveway falls under the exclusion for damage to property in the care, custody and control of the insured at the time of a loss.

We believe this is a straight property damage liability claim, as the truck was parked at the time of the claim; and is, in fact, owned by a corporation. Can you provide coverage advice and any precedent information we could provide to support the position of our insured?

Incorrect lessor named

I quoted a commercial automobile policy for someone using a copy of the prior policy. The lessor for a scheduled vehicle was not the current one, so the new policy did not list the correct name on the Lessor—Additional Insured And Loss Payee endorsement. An accident occurred and the lessor was named in the third-party suit. The insurer will not defend the lessor because it is not the one listed on the policy. Is there anything I can do to resolve this without an errors-and-omissions claim?

Ownership of scheduled commercial vehicle

My client is a sole proprietor who uses a commercial vehicle in his business. His wife owns the vehicle. Is there any coverage issue when the named insured does not own the scheduled vehicle?

Trucker’s general liability

What does a trucker’s general liability policy cover when not operating vehicles covered on the motor carrier policy?