Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 174298; Published
Judges Sawyer, Murphy, and Schma; Unanimous; Opinion by Judge Sawyer
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: 214 Mich App 195; Link to Opinion
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Allowable Expenses for Conservatorships and Guardianships [§3107(1)(a)]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous published Opinion by Judge Sawyer, the Court of Appeals held that an insurance company is obligated under §3107(l)(a) of the no-fault statute to pay for the fees and expenses regarding the appointment and services of a guardian and conservator for an incapacitated automobile accident victim. The court rejected the defendant's argument that §3107(l)(a) only obligates an insurance company to provide for medical care and only medical care of an injured person. The court stated that the statute is not so limited, nor has any case ever held that the statutory obligation of §3107(1 )(a) to pay for all reasonable charges incurred for reasonably necessary products, services and accommodations for an injured person's care, recovery or rehabilitation is limited strictly to medical care, he court stated:
"In short, §3107(1)(a) provides for the payment of expenses incurred for the reasonably necessary services for an injured person's care. It is clear to us that if a person is so seriously injured in an automobile accident that it is necessary to appoint a guardian and conservator for that person, the services performed by the guardian and conservator are reasonably necessary to provide for the person's care. Therefore, they are allowable under §3107."