Mich. Crash Case Raises Inquiries about Insurance coverage on Scooters

What You Require to Know:

• A man is looking for advantages from insurers in Michigan for injuries sustained when a auto hit him in his motorized scooter.


• The insurers are refusing payment and say that the man’s motorized scooter was a motor automobile, and should have been insured like a individual car.


• Lawyers told On the internet Auto Insurance News (OAIN) that, if insurers win on their argument, users of motorized scooters and wheelchair could be necessary to buy car insurance coverage.

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Men and women in Michigan who use scooters and motorized wheelchairs could be necessary to get auto insurance coverage if courts rule in favor of the insurer in an ongoing case.

The court case could have implications for thousands of customers of scooters and motorized wheelchairs in the state, lawyer Harold Perakis told the Macomb Everyday this month. Perakis represents George Veness, a 63-year-old man who was riding his scooter when struck by an at-fault automobile in 2012.

The Legal Argument

At the center of this court case is a basic query about vehicle insurance coverage: what constitutes a automobile? Other circumstances around the U.S. have raised concerns of regardless of whether or not other modes of transport—like motorized scooters and wheelchairs and modified golf carts—require standard automobile insurance and if positive aspects of that typical coverage apply when they crash.

Related Hyperlink: Fla. Court: Insurer Should Cover Injuries in Modified Golf-Cart Crash

In the Michigan case, Veness is searching for compensation for about $ 2 million in health-related bills, like therapy for neck and back injuries and in-house care.

According to the Day-to-day, State Farm and Farm Bureau of Michigan cut off injury advantages for Veness, arguing in court that his scooter is a vehicle and, below that classification, must be covered as such with Michigan auto insurance.

According to the Daily, State Farm lawyer Timothy Groustra stated in a legal brief that Veness’ “failure to receive PIP (private insurance protection) on his scooter signifies that (state law) bars him from recovering PIP rewards from State Farm.”

On the other hand, Veness’ attorney responded with a legal filing citing state law that “does not and has never recognized that an electrically-operated wheelchair is a ‘motor vehicle.’” According to the Everyday, Perakis also said that Michigan law’s definition of a motor car “does not consist of an electric private assistive mobility device.”

Attorney: Case Has Wide Implications

Steve Gursten, a lawyer at Michigan Auto Law, spoke with OAIN following blogging about the case.

A court ruling in favor of State Farm and Farm Bureau would mean that “motorized wheelchairs are the equivalent of cars and trucks for auto insurance purposes,” Gursten stated to OAIN. That categorization would mean customers of motorized wheelchairs are technically “uninsured drivers” who are denied each the positive aspects of coverage and particular rights in court when they are injured in crashes.

In effect, according to Gursten, these men and women “will be forced to go out and buy Michigan No-Fault auto insurance coverage for their motorized wheelchairs.”

“For these folks, a lot of of whom are currently on quite tight budgets, this will be a substantial, financial burden,” Gursten told OAIN.

Gursten also updated OAIN with the newest on the case in Macomb County Circuit Court. Each State Farm and Farm Bureau of Michigan submitted motions in which they contended that the case should be dismissed since Veness was owed no rewards. State Farm has because withdrawn the motion.

The case is subsequent set for a “status conference” in September, according to Gurs8.

In yet another blog post, Gursten mentioned his research identified no existing products or coverage choices for motorized wheelchairs at State Farm or Farm Bureau.

Mich. Crash Case Raises Inquiries about Insurance coverage on Scooters