In Cupido v. Perez, the plaintiff was a resident of Pa. involved in a motor vehicle accident in NJ. Plaintiff selected the full tort option under his personal automobile insurance policy giving him the right to sue for any injuries sustained in a motor vehicle accident. Plaintiff’s carrier, Nationwide, was not authorized to transact any motor vehicle insurance business in NJ; however, it controlled 4 affiliated companies which were authorized to transact commercial motor vehicle insurance but not private passenger insurance business in NJ.

The issue on appeal was whether the NJ Deemer Statute , N.J.S.A. 17 :28-1.4 applied based on the control of an affiliate company authorized to transact commercial motor vehicle insurance business in NJ. The Appellate Division found that the Deemer Statute applied, and therefore that the plaintiff was subject to the NJ verbal threshold limitations on his right to sue for injuries.

Please contact Robert Ball with any questions.

http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/opinions/a4557-08.pdf