Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 88034; Published
Judges Cynar, M.J. Kelly, and J. A. Hathaway; Unanimous; Per Curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: 157 Mich App 261; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Not Applicable
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Private Contract (Meaning and Intent)
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous published per curiam opinion, the Court of Appeals reversed summary disposition and ruled in favor of the plaintiff, Westen, in a case interpreting the "motor vehicle" exclusion of a homeowner's insurance policy.
The plaintiff was struck and killed by a moped being driven by the defendant. The parties stipulated to a consent judgment, provided that enforcement would be within the applicable homeowner's insurance policy. The homeowner's policy contained an exclusion of coverage for injuries arising out of the ownership, maintenance, operation, use, loading or unloading of any motor vehicle. The policy defined a motor vehicle as a "land motor vehicle" designed for travel on public roads. The definition of motor vehicle excluded a specific list of vehicles, such as boats, home trailer, recreational motor vehicle, farm tractor, farm implement, etc.
In construing the language of the policy, the court held that the exclusion was ambiguous because it did not contain a physical description against which to measure a moped. Also, there being no specific mention of moped in the list of vehicles included or excluded from the definition of motor vehicle, the court felt that the motor vehicle was ambiguous in the policy, and construed against the insurer. Therefore, coverage was allowed.
[Author's Note: Item No. 1454 was inadvertently omitted from earlier summaries and is included here for completeness.]
