GWENDOLYN A. SWIFT, APPELLANT,
v.
CENTURY INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK AND ROSELYN A. GILLINGHAM, D/B/A GILLINGHAM INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLEES

Fla. 3d DCA | 1972-06-27
No. 71-1293
Before BARKDULL, C. J., HENDRY, J., and HARDING, MAJOR B., Associate Judge.
264 So. 2d 88 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (1972) Positive Treatment
Cited by 7 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

Swift appeals a summary judgment denying her claim for uninsured motorist coverage under an auto insurance policy issued to her alleged common law husband, Jimmy Milton. The court affirmed the summary judgment, holding that Swift was not a resident of Milton's household at the time of the accident, which was a requirement for coverage under the policy's family protection provision.


Holding

The court held that Swift was not entitled to coverage because the insurance policy's definition of 'insured' required family members to be residents of the same household as the named insured at the time of loss, and Swift was living with Charles Dawkins rather than Jimmy Milton at the time of the accident.


Headnotes

[1] A party claiming coverage under an automobile liability policy as a resident spouse must demonstrate that they were, in fact, residing in the same household as the named…

[2] Summary judgment is appropriate when the pleadings, depositions, affidavits, and other evidence clearly show the absence of a genuine issue of material fact.

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Key Quotes

“insured means : '(1) The named insured as stated in the policy (herein also referred to as the 'principal named insured') and any person designated as named insured in the schedule and, while residents of the same household, the spouse of any such named insured and relatives of either.'”

The policy language establishing the household residency requirement for coverage of family members

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Facts & Procedural History

Swift was injured in a car accident on September 10, 1970, while driving an automobile owned by Charles Dawkins, with whom she was living at the time.…

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Opinion of the Court
HENDRY, Judge.

HENDRY, Judge.

This is an appeal by plaintiff Gwendolyn A. Swift from a final summary judgment entered for the defendants in an action by plaintiff for damages against defendant Gillingham Insurance Company and for compulsory arbitration against defendant Century Insurance Company of New York.

The plaintiff’s action was for injuries sustained while driving an automobile of a “friend” when it collided with the automobile of an uninsured motorist. At the time of the accident, plaintiff claimed that she was the common law wife of Jimmy Milton who was a named insured in a policy issued to him by Century Insurance pursuant to an application with Gillingham Insurance Company for a standard form automobile liability policy with uninsured motorist coverage. Milton, in his application for insurance, listed the plaintiff as a driver and as his wife.

The injuries complained of occurred on September 10, 1970, six to eighteen months after Milton and plaintiff had ceased to live together. She was living with Charles Dawkins, the owner of the automobile which she was driving when she was injured.

Plaintiff claimed coverage under the policy in question based on the contract of insurance issued to Jimmy Milton that provided for family protection coverage for all sums to which the insured would be legally entitled to recover as damages from the owner or operator of an uninsured automobile because of bodily injury. The policy states that insured means :

“(1) The named insured as stated in the policy (herein also referred to as the ‘principal named insured’) and any person designated as named insured in the schedule and, while residents of the same household, the spouse of any such named insured and relatives of either.”

Defendant’s main defense as set forth in the answer was that the plaintiff was not a resident of the household of Jimmy Milton at the time of the accident in question.

The defendants moved for a summary final judgment and made it clearly to appear by the pleadings, depositions, exhibits and affidavits that the plaintiff was living with Charles Dawkins and not Jimmy Milton, her alleged common law husband. The trial court granted defendants’ motion. *90It is appellant’s contention that the court erred in granting summary final judgment. We reject this contention; she was not a resident of Jimmy Milton’s household.

A motion for summary judgment may be granted when it is made to appear from the pleadings, depositions, affidavits or other evidence before the court that there exists no genuine issue of material fact to be tried. We think the trial court was correct in finding the absence of any genuine issue of a material fact to be determined by trial.

Accordingly, the judgment appealed is affirmed.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Verta Fernandez v. Ovidio Edmund Kaba, 360 So. 2d 34 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978)
    …ven though he applied his brakes as soon as he saw the plaintiff. It affirmatively appears without genuine issue of material fact that the defendant driver was not guilty of actionable negligence. See Swift v. Century Insurance Company of New York, 264 So. 2d 88 (Fla.3d DCA 1972); and Gates v. Fien, 219 So. 2d 477 (Fla.3d DCA 1969). See also Preger v. Gomory, 55 So. 2d 541 (Fla.1951); Bell v. A. A. Holiday Rent-A-Car, Inc., 304 So. 2d 535 (Fla.3d DCA 1974); and Jackson v. Haney, 124 So. 2d 719 (Fla.2d DCA 1…
  • Waikiki P'ship v. TAX Assessor, 41 Fla. Supp. 12 (Dade Cty. Cir. Ct. 1974)
    …ning whether a genuine issue of material fact exists, the court is limited to reviewing the record as it exists at the hearing on the motion for summary judgment. Auerbach v. Alto, 281 So. 2d 567 (3d D.C.A. Fla. 1973); Swift v. Century Insurance Co. 264 So. 2d 88 (3d D.C.A. Fla. 1972); Brady v. Zimmerman, 246 So. 2d 637 (4th D.C.A. Fla. 1971); Page v. Staley, 226 So. 2d 129 (4th D.C.A. Fla. 1969); Turner Produce Company, Inc. v. Lake Shore Growers Cooperative Association, 217 So. 2d 856 (4th D.C.A. Fla. 1969…
  • …ssues of forfeiture must be decided by a jury. The defendant is simply wrong. Summary judgment is proper where pleadings, depositions, affidavits and other evidence disclose no issue of material fact. See Swift v. Century Ins. Co. of New York, 264 So. 2d 88, 90 (Fla. 3d DCA 1972). 5 The trial court reviewed the pleadings, the defendant’s deposition, the affidavits, and the arguments. There were no genuine issues of material fact. The trial court correctly granted the Town’s motion for summ…

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