Employers Mutual Casualty Company v. St. Paul Insurance Company

In Employers Mutual Casualty Company v. St. Paul Insurance Company, 154 S.W.3d 910 (Tex.App.--Dallas 2005, no pet.), a "crash truck" which carried the crash barrier and flashing arrow board was located at the rear of a road-work convoy. The driver stopped the crash truck near the crest of a hill while waiting for the trucks in front of it to start climbing the next hill. The crash truck was rear-ended while it was stopped but still running. The issue on appeal was whether insurance coverage was excluded by the provision that the policy did not cover bodily injury, property damage, or medical expenses resulting from the use or operation of any auto owned or operated by any protected person. Employers argued that the crash truck was being used as a steel barricade, not as an auto. Id. at 914. The Dallas Court of Appeals held that whether the truck was stopped was not determinative of whether it was being used or operated as an auto. Id. at 915. The crash truck was transporting the driver, the crash barrier, and the flashing arrow board at the time of the accident. The driver was in the truck, the engine was running, and the driver was waiting to drive over the crest of the hill when the accident occurred. Id. The truck was not merely the place where the accident occurred; instead it was the truck's presence on the roadway and the driver's decision to stop the truck in the left lane of fast-moving traffic that resulted in the accident. Id.