Another Court Upholds The Validity of the Household Exclusion

In the case of Erie Insurance Exchange v. Kennedy, No. 10106 of 2024, C.A. (C.P. Lawr. Co. Jan. 27, 2025 Hodge, J.), the court granted a UIM carrier’s Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings and confirmed that a Plaintiff was barred from recovering UIM benefits under the subject policy based upon an application of the household exclusion. In so ruling, the court relied upon the case of Erie Insurance Exchange v. Mione, 289 A.3d 524 (Pa. 2023).

According to the Opinion, two (2) individuals were killed in a motorcycle accident. The motorcycle was insured by Progressive Insurance. Progressive denied coverage for UIM benefits.

The decedents were also insured under a policy issued by Erie Insurance Exchange that had an exclusion for damages sustained by any insured who occupied a vehicle owned by the insured but which was not insured for UIM benefits under the Erie Insurance policy.

The court found that the facts of the case fell under the case of Erie Insurance Exchange v. Mione.

The trial court otherwise noted that the household vehicle exclusion is not enforceable if the insured is seeking to stack the UIM coverage in question with UIM proceeds from another policy in order to circumvent the household vehicle exclusion. Here, however, there was no stacking of UIM coverage involved in the case and the carrier was found to have properly denied UIM coverage under the household vehicle exclusion.

Anyone wishing to review a copy of this decision may click this LINK.

Source: The Legal Intelligencer Common Pleas Case Alert, www.Law.com (March 27, 2025).

Source of image:  Photo by Alex Dos Santos on www.pexels.com.