Unloading Injured Passenger Constitutes “Use” Within Meaning Of Insurance Code Section 11580.1.

A passenger in a car that stopped at the scene of an automobile collision feared a person might be in danger of being further injured in an explosion because the wrecked car was smoking and leaking fluid. She grabbed the person inside and physically removed her from the car. The woman who was removed from the wrecked car suffered severe spinal injuries and became paraplegic. She sued the woman who removed her from the wrecked car. The would be rescuer was insured under a Package Policy issued by Encompass Insurance Company, which included car insurance, homeowners insurance and personal excess liability insurance. Encompass accepted the tender and assumed responsibility for its insured’s defense. The insured, that is, the would be rescuer, also tendered her defense to her car insurance company, Mid-Century Insurance Company, and to the car insurer of the driver of the car in which she was a passenger when they stopped at the scene of the accident, Coast National Insurance Company. Both Mid-Century and Coast rejected the tender. The present action is one in which Encompass sued both Mid-Century and Coast after it settled the underlying action. The federal district court entered summary judgment in favor of Mid-Century and Coast. The relevant language in both policies is required by Insurance Code section 11580.1: “The term ‘ use ’ when applied to a motor vehicle shall only mean operating, maintaining, loading, or unloading a motor vehicle.” The Ninth Circuit reversed, stating: “We conclude that unloading an injured passenger from an automobile constitutes ‘ use ’ of that automobile, under California law.” (Encompass Insurance Co. v. Coast National Insurance Co. (Ninth Cir.; August 13, 2014) 764 F.3d 981.)