American Motorist Insurance Company v. LaCourse

In American Motorist Insurance Company v. LaCourse, 314 A.2d 813 (Me. 1974), the Supreme Judicial Court of Maine was called upon to decide whether the son of a named insured was covered under an insurance policy when he got into an accident while driving a non-owned automobile. Id. at 814, 816. The policy, which was issued by American Motorist Insurance Company, covered members of the named insured's family when operating a non-owned automobile, "provided the insured's family member's actual operation or (if he is not operating) the other actual use thereof is with the permission, or reasonably believed to be with the permission, of the owner and is within the scope of such permission." Id. at 815. The Court held that the trial court was not clearly erroneous in finding that the insured's son "did actually and reasonably believe that he had the owner's consent, through a permitee, to drive the automobile," id. at 818, and thus was covered by the policy. Id. at 820.