Drunk Driving Exclusion in Automobile Insurance Policies

Drunk driving or driving while under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance is illegal. Public policy does not permit a criminal to profit from a criminal act. Commonly, insurance companies include a clause in their automobile insurance policies that prohibit an insured from receiving damages for bodily injuries or death that occurred in an automobile accident caused by drunk driving. A drunk driving exclusion can be a separate clause in the policy or drunk driving could be excluded under the policy's crime exclusion.

Settlement Obligations under Automobile Insurance Policies

An automobile insurance policy can contain a clause that requires an insured to obtain the consent of the insurance company before settling a lawsuit with an uninsured motorist. Some states require the consent-to-settle clause by statute. In the absence of a statutory requirement, many courts have upheld consent-to-settle clauses. Those states that do not enforce such clauses often cite public policy. They fear that an insurance company will be able to avoid paying its share of uninsured motorist coverage by failing to consent to a settlement. Other courts find that such clauses can reduce settlements by creating another step for the insured take.

Interaction of Collision and Comprehensive Coverage in Auto Insurance Policies

Collision coverage and comprehensive coverage in policies of motor vehicle insurance are interrelated with one another, as both types of coverage are intended to protect an owner or operator against loss resulting from damage to a covered vehicle itself rather than insuring against legal liability for personal injury or property damage suffered by others that results from operation of the covered vehicle.

Tort Liability for Highway Design

The system of streets and highways in the United States covers many thousands of miles of road surface constructed of various kinds of materials and designed for a variety of vehicle types and operations. The extensive use of the streets and highways inevitably results in a large number of motor vehicle accidents that annually cause thousands of deaths and personal injuries and extensive amounts of property damage. In the legal actions that follow, it is not surprising that the design and construction of the roadways on which such accidents take place should be brought into a case as possible bases for a finding of liability.