Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 91722; Published
Judges Shepherd, Wahls, and Sullivan; Unanimous; Per Curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: 160 Mich App 182; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Exclusion for Parked Vehicles Covered by Workers Comp [§3106(2)]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous per curiam Opinion, the Court of Appeals denied no-fault benefits to a plaintiff under the exclusionary provisions of §3106(2) for the reason that plaintiff sustained his injury in the course of his employment while loading his employer's new car hauler semi-truck. Plaintiff’s injury occurred after he had driven the new cars onto the truck secured the load with the chain and went back into the office to get a cup of coffee. After drinking his coffee, he went back to the truck and noticed that one of the chains was loose. He climbed up onto the truck to tighten the chain. The ratchet gave way and plaintiff fell to the ground injuring himself. The Court, relying upon several Court of Appeals decisions which broadly interpreted the terms "loading" and "unloading" as used in §3106(2), concluded that plaintiff’s injury occurred while he was still in the process of loading the vehicle. The Court stated that an integral part of the loading operation is to properly secure the loaded cars with safety chains. Had plaintiff’s injury occurred prior to his leaving the truck and getting a cup of coffee, there would be no question that the injury occurred during the loading process. The fact that there is a time delay should not change the result. However, the Court limited its holding by stating, "we do not decide whether tightening the chains in transit would still constitute loading, as such a determination is unnecessary to our decision. In the instant case, only a short time had elapsed since the initial tightening. Plaintiff had not yet begun his trip and was still on the employer's premises."
