Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 60605; Published
Judges MacKenzie, Maher, and Simon; Unanimous; Per Curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: 125 Mich App 123; Link to Opinion
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Entitlement to No-Fault PIP Benefits: Bodily Injury Requirement [§3105(1)]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Legislative Purpose and Intent
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous per curiam Opinion, the Court of Appeals held that plaintiff’s back disability, which was the result of many years of truck driving, was not an "accidental bodily injury" as provided in §3105(4) of the No-Fault Act and thus does not entitle plaintiff to receive no-fault benefits. In denying benefits to plaintiff, the Court stated, "Reading the no-fault act as a whole, we conclude that the legislature intended to authorize the payment of personal protection insurance benefits only for an injury sustained in a single accident, having a temporal and spatial location. Accordingly, we hold that 'accidental bodily injury' as that phrase is used in the no-fault act is an injury resulting from only such an accident. Mr. Wheeler's injury arose from a series of events spanning many years of driving and many miles of roadway. It is not attributable to a single accident. We hold, therefore, that as a matter of law, Mr. Wheeler's injury is not “accidental bodily injury' under the no-fault act."