In September, 2010, a commercial auto insurance policy was issued to a county commissioner including uninsured motorist coverage for county vehicles. The liability limits of the policy included $125,000 per person and a maximum of $1 Million per accident.
A county worker was injured on the job while performing road-resurfacing duties and filed a claim for personal injury under the policy requesting coverage under the uninsured motorist portion of the policy contending he was operating a covered vehicle. The insurance company denied the claim and filed a declaratory judgment action stating the claimant could not be considered an insured as he was not occupying a covered vehicle and asked the court to rule there was no coverage. The claimant filed a counterclaim asserting he was entitled to policy limits of $1 Million in coverage for injuries sustained.
The claimant, as well as at least five other members of the road crew, were operating three vehicles as part of a chip-sealing method used to resurface the road; the oil distributor truck, chipper, and a dump truck. The injured claimant was riding on the back of the chipper being pushed by the dump truck when the chipper was pushed into the oil distributor truck and the claimant’s leg was pinned between the two pieces of equipment.
The parties agreed the dump truck was considered a covered vehicle under the insurance policy whereas the chipper was considered "mobile equipment". However, according to the insurance policy, mobile equipment is considered a covered auto when being "carried" or "towed" by a covered auto. These terms were not specifically defined in the insurance policy.
Plaintiff and the insurer both filed motions for summary judgment in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma. The court held that the chipper was being towed by the dump truck when the accident occurred and was therefore considered a covered auto under the policy. However, the court ruled under the circumstances there was $125,000 in uninsured motorist coverage, not $1 Million, because the amount of uninsured motorist coverage could not exceed the amount of liability coverage, i.e., $125,000. Argonaut Ins. Co. v. Earnest, 861 F.Supp.2d 1313 (N.D. Okla. 2012).