Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 88455; Unpublished
Judges Walsh, Wahls, and Giddings; Unanimous; Per Curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: Not Applicable; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Exclusion for Parked Vehicles Covered by Workers Comp [§3106(2)]
Nature of Survivor’s Loss Benefits [§3108(1)]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous per curiam Opinion, the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court and denied no-fault survivor's loss benefits to a widow whose husband was killed while driving a motor vehicle chassis onto a semi-tractor trailer. While the decedent was driving the chassis onto the lower level of the trailer, a wheel on the chassis struck a hydraulic line causing the upper level of the transport vehicle to collapse, resulting in decedent's death. The Court of Appeals denied benefits pursuant to the employee-loading/unloading exception set forth in §3106(2) of the Act. The Court relied upon the previous decision in Logan v Commercial Carriers (Item No. 943) and ruled that the chassis in question was not a motor vehicle that was designed for operation on a public highway. In addition, the Court rejected the argument that the injury here arose out of the operation of another vehicle. The Court held that the only vehicles involved were the trailer and the chassis. The tractor was not involved in the incident. Finally, the Court, consistent with the Logan opinion, gave a broad definition to "loading" as that term is used in §3106(2). The Court said that the "terms 'loading' and 'unloading' should be interpreted broadly in order to further the statutory purpose of eliminating the duplication of benefits for work related injuries which do not relate to the actual driving or operation of a motor vehicle The driving of the chassis onto the trailer for shipment as cargo constituted the loading of a vehicle during the course of employment." Thus, there was no coverage.
