Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 59955; Published
Judges Brennan, Riley, and Payant; Unanimous
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: 118 Mich App 838; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
One-Year Notice Rule Limitation [§3145(1)]
Obligation of Claimant to Make Timely Claim to the Assigned Claims Facility [§3174]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous Opinion by Judge Payant, the Court of Appeals rejected the contention by plaintiff that an exception should be made to the one year statute of limitations provision of §3145 to extend the limitations period then, despite diligent efforts, a no-fault claimant unable to ascertain the identity of the responsible insurer. The Court held that although the one year statute of limitations is relatively short, "it seems consonant with the legislative purpose in the No-Fault Act in encouraging claimants to bring their claims to court within a reasonable time and the reciprocal obligations of insurers to adjust and pay claims seasonably." In rejecting the plaintiff’s invitation to adopt this new tolling exception, the Court noted that the plaintiff in this case (a) had never contacted the owner of the vehicle to inquire as to the identity of his insurance company, (b) had never produced any correspondence from the Secretary of State's office substantiating the fact that allegedly erroneous information had been given regarding the identity of the insurer, and (c) in any event, waited to commence suit against the properly identified insurer and the assigned Claims Facility, until two weeks after the one year limitation period had passed. The Court stated that in those situations where the responsible insurer cannot be identified within one year, a person is given the right to proceed through the Assigned Claims office under §3174. However, as stated, this alternative was not timely exercised by the plaintiff in this case.