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No. 2--03--0252

IN THE

APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS

SECOND DISTRICT

JUSTICE GROMETER delivered the opinion of the court:

Defendant, Allstate Insurance Company, appeals the trial court's order granting summaryjudgment to plaintiffs, Terry Striplin, as administrator of the estate of Dillon Striplin and as the parentof Corey Striplin, Denton Striplin, and Zachary Striplin; and Jason Striplin. The trial court held thatplaintiffs could "stack" the underinsured motorist coverages for two vehicles under a policy thatdefendant issued to Terry Striplin. Defendant argues that the trial court erred in holding that thearrangement of the policy's declarations pages--showing a separate liability limit for each vehicleinsured--created an ambiguity that had to be resolved in favor of greater coverage. Defendantcontends that the court should have enforced the policy's unambiguous antistacking provision. Weagree, and therefore reverse.

Terry Striplin insured two vehicles, a Ford truck and a Ford van, under a policy that defendantissued. The policy contained two declarations pages, one for each vehicle. Each declarations pageprovided that the insured had uninsured motorist coverage of $100,000 per person and $300,000 peroccurrence.

The policy's general provisions contained a paragraph entitled "Combining Limits Of Two OrMore Autos Prohibited." This paragraph provided as follows:

"The limits of liability applicable to any one auto shown on the policy declarations will not becombined with or added to the limits of liability applicable to any other auto shown on thepolicy declarations or covered by the policy, even though a separate premium is charged foreach of those autos ***. *** If two or more autos are shown on the policy declarations andone of these autos is involved in the accident, the limits of liability shown on the policydeclarations for the involved auto will apply. If none of the autos shown on the policydeclarations is involved in the accident, the highest limits of liability shown on the policydeclarations for any one auto will apply." (Emphasis in original.)

On January 12, 2002, Terry Striplin's son, Dillon Striplin, was riding in a vehicle driven andinsured by Richard Miller. Miller drove negligently and ran into a tree. As a result, Dillon Striplinwas killed. Under Miller's automobile insurance policy, plaintiffs collected $50,000, which was thepolicy limit. They then filed a claim for underinsured motorist benefits under Terry Striplin's policy. Defendant paid plaintiffs $50,000--the $100,000 coverage limit for one vehicle minus the $50,000received from Miller's insurer. Plaintiffs claimed they could combine or "stack" the coverage limitsfor the two vehicles that defendant insured. When defendant refused to pay more, plaintiffs filed thisaction seeking a declaration that they were entitled to $150,000--the combined limit of $200,000minus the $50,000 already received. Both parties moved for summary judgment.

The trial court agreed with plaintiffs that, under Bruder v. Country Mutual Insurance Co., 156Ill. 2d 179 (1993), the policy's multiple listings of liability limits on the declarations pages conflictedwith the antistacking language in the general provisions. The court resolved the ambiguity in favorof greater coverage for the insured. Accordingly, the court granted plaintiffs' summary judgmentmotion and denied defendant's motion. Defendant timely appeals.

Defendant argues that the trial court erred in holding that the policy is ambiguous. Accordingto defendant, the statements in Bruder that the court relied on are obiter dicta, which are not bindingon lower courts. Defendant points out that several supreme court cases have held that unambiguousantistacking clauses, such as that in defendant's policy, must be given effect. Defendant contends thatmerely listing the limits of liability for multiple insured vehicles separately, without more, does notnegate the policy's clear antistacking language.

The construction of an insurance policy is a question of law subject to de novo review. McKinney v. Allstate Insurance Co., 188 Ill. 2d 493, 497 (1999). The primary object of contractconstruction is to ascertain and give effect to the parties' intentions as expressed in their agreement. American States Insurance Co. v. Koloms, 177 Ill. 2d 473, 479 (1997). If the policy is clear andunambiguous, we must give the language its plain meaning. If terms are ambiguous, they should beconstrued against the insurer, which drafted the policy. Koloms, 177 Ill. 2d at 479. However, courtsshould not strain to find an ambiguity where none exists. McKinney, 188 Ill. 2d at 497.

Because of its central role in the trial court's decision and in the parties' arguments on appeal,we begin with a discussion of Bruder. There, Ruth Bruder was injured in an accident with twouninsured drivers. Among several insurance policies that provided coverage was a business autopolicy covering two trucks owned by her husband, John Bruder. The Bruders attempted to stack theuninsured motorist coverage applicable to the two trucks. The policy contained a provision thatunambiguously prohibited stacking coverages. Bruder, 156 Ill. 2d at 189. However, the Bruderscontended that the layout of the declarations page, listing separately the premiums paid for eachcoverage for each truck, created an ambiguity. The court rejected this argument. It observed that,although the declarations page listed separate premiums for each truck, it showed only once the limitsof liability applicable to both trucks. Bruder, 156 Ill. 2d at 192. The court continued as follows: "It would not be difficult to find an ambiguity created by such a listing of the bodilyinjury liability limit for each person insured. It could easily be interpreted that an insuredshould enjoy a total limit of $200,000 in coverage because a figure of $100,000 would beshown for each pickup truck. There would be little to suggest in such a listing that the partiesintended that coverage was to be limited to that provided for only one of the two pickuptrucks. It would be more reasonable to assume that the parties intended that, in return for thetwo premiums, two $100,000 coverage amounts were afforded." Bruder, 156 Ill. 2d at 192.

How to interpret what has become known as the Bruder dicta has divided this state's appellatecourt ever since. The Fifth District had apparently taken the position that, regardless of antistackinglanguage in the policy, any listing of multiple liability limits automatically creates an ambiguity thatmust be resolved in favor of the insured. See Yates v. Farmers Auto Insurance Ass'n, 311 Ill. App.3d 797 (2000); Pekin Insurance Co. v. Estate of Goben, 303 Ill. App. 3d 639 (1999). In its mostrecent opinion, however, the Fifth District retreated from its previous position, holding that thepresence of multiple liability limits, in combination with other language, may create an ambiguity. Hall v. General Casualty Co. of Illinois, 328 Ill. App. 3d 655, 660 (2002). In Domin v. ShelbyInsurance Co., 326 Ill. App. 3d 688 (2001), the First District expressed some doubt about thesoundness of the Bruder dicta but did not consider the issue further because the policy there, like thatin Bruder, contained only a single listing of the liability limits rather than a "confusing columnararrangement." Domin, 326 Ill. App. 3d at 696-97. The Fourth District, without discussing Bruder,held that listing multiple liability limits on the declarations page did not create an ambiguity in the faceof clear antistacking language elsewhere in the policy. Pekin Insurance Co. v. Estate of Ritter, 322Ill. App. 3d 1004, 1005 (2001). Two federal courts have discussed the issue as well. See Allen v.Transamerica Insurance Co., 128 F.3d 462 (7th Cir. 1997); Moehring v. Allied Property & CasualtyInsurance Co., No. 00--CV--4234--JPG (S.D. Ill. 2001).

Having considered these cases and their various rationales, we cannot accept a per se rule thatany listing of multiple limits of liability creates an ambiguity. There are several reasons for this. First,such a holding would be inconsistent with later supreme court precedent. Two years after Bruder,the supreme court decided Grzeszczak v. Illinois Farmers Insurance Co., 168 Ill. 2d 216 (1995), acase involving an attempt to stack underinsured motorist coverages under two separate policies. Thecourt initially stated that antistacking clauses will be enforced as written if they are unambiguous anddo not violate public policy. Grzeszczak, 168 Ill. 2d at 223. The court then held that clauses in bothpolicies, stating that the " 'total limit' " of the defendant's liability under all policies would not exceedthe highest applicable limit under any one policy, unambiguously prevented the insured fromaggregating, or stacking, coverage under multiple policies. Grzeszczak, 168 Ill. 2d at 225. Althoughthe court did not explicitly say so, because Grzeszczak involved two separate policies, the only logicalinference is that each policy included its own declarations page listing the liability limits for the vehiclecovered by that policy. However, the court held that the antistacking provisions clearly preventedstacking the coverages in the separate policies. We see no meaningful distinction between twodeclarations pages attached to separate policies and, as is the case here, two declarations pagesattached to the same policy.

The problem with a per se approach is further illustrated by the following example. Here, asin Bruder, the liability limits for the two covered vehicles are identical. However, if different limitsapplied to the two vehicles, under a broad reading of Bruder, defendant could never unambiguouslyprohibit stacking. The different coverage limits would have to be set out somewhere, and this wouldalways trump an antistacking clause, no matter how clearly the latter was written. Nothing in Brudersuggests such a result.

Another problem with the per se approach is that, by focusing solely on the layout of thedeclarations page, it ignores the command that all portions of an insurance policy must be construedtogether. Travelers Insurance Co. v. Eljer Manufacturing Co., 197 Ill. 2d 278, 292 (2001). Althoughseldom stated, the reason for this rule is obvious. Documents are written with the intention that theybe read as a whole. A question left unanswered by one portion of the document may be answeredquite clearly by another portion of it.

We agree with the cases holding that listings of multiple liability limits may create anambiguity in conjunction with other language in the policy. In Hall, the court emphasized that "it isnot the number of times the limit of liability is listed on the declarations page that creates theambiguity in the case at bar." Hall, 328 Ill. App. 3d at 660. However, the court held that anambiguity was present because the declarations page stated that " 'Insurance is provided where apremium is shown.' " Hall, 328 Ill. App. 3d at 660. Because multiple premiums were showntogether, the declarations page could be reasonably construed to mean that the liability limit wasprovided for each vehicle, even though the policy listed the limits of liability only once. Hall, 328 Ill.App. 3d at 659.

In Allen, the court held that a policy's antistacking provision, when read in conjunction withthe layout of the declarations page, created an ambiguity. Allen, 128 F.3d at 467. The antistackingprovision at issue stated that "the limit of liability shown in the Schedule or in the Declarations foreach accident for Underinsured Motorists Coverage is our maximum limit of liability" and was themost the defendant would pay regardless of the number of insureds, claims made, vehicles orpremiums shown in the declarations, or vehicles involved in the accident. (Emphasis in original.) Allen, 128 F.3d at 464. The declarations page contained four columns, showing premiums paid andcoverage amounts for each of two vehicles. Allen, 128 F.3d at 468.

Significantly, the Allen court stated that the central question it had to answer was, "[W]hatis the limit of liability referred to in the provision?" (Emphasis in original.) Allen, 128 F.3d at 464. Relying on Bruder, the court held that the Illinois Supreme Court would find the policy ambiguousconcerning stacking because the "limit of liability" referred to in the antistacking clause could meanthe limits of liability for either vehicle or for both combined. Allen, 128 F.3d at 467.

The policy here does not contain any of the language that made the policies in Hall and Allenambiguous. The declarations pages do not contain a statement that coverage is provided where apremium is shown. The pages merely state "COVERAGE FOR VEHICLE #1" and "COVERAGEFOR VEHICLE #2."

Moreover, the "Combining Limits Of Two Or More Autos Prohibited" section does notmerely refer to the "limits of liability" in the declarations pages, as in Allen. The section specificallyprovides that "The limits of liability applicable to any one auto shown on the policy declarations willnot be combined with or added to the limits of liability applicable to any other auto shown on thepolicy declarations." (Emphasis in original.) Moreover, the provision goes on to explain whathappens in the precise situation that occurred here: "If none of the autos shown on the policydeclarations is involved in the accident, the highest limits of liability shown on the policy declarationsfor any one auto will apply." (Emphasis in original.) In Allen, it was the failure of the antistackingclause to define "limits of liability" that led to the finding that the policy was ambiguous. Here, the"Combining Limits Of Two Or More Autos Prohibited" section specifically answers that question. It specifically states what happens where, as here, an insured has an accident involving neither of thetwo autos insured. The antistacking clause simply is not ambiguous when read in conjunction withthe declarations pages.

In Pekin Insurance Co. v. Estate of Ritter, 322 Ill. App. 3d 1004 (2001), the court was facedwith a policy similar to the one at issue here. The court observed that "[t]he entries in the columnson the declaration page in this policy do nothing more than indicate the amount of coverage providedfor each vehicle and the amount of the total premium allotted to that coverage." Pekin, 322 Ill. App.3d at 1005. The court went on to explain, "To the extent that there could be some confusion arisingout of whether the coverages could be 'stacked,' the UIM coverage limitation provision clarifies thatquestion." Pekin, 322 Ill. App. 3d at 1005.

We agree with this analysis. Any provision of a lengthy document is bound to be ambiguousin the sense that it creates questions that can be answered only with reference to other portions of thedocument. That is why all provisions of an insurance policy must be construed together. Here, thedeclarations pages arguably leave open the question whether the liability limits for the two vehiclesmay be added together in a case where neither of the vehicles is involved in the accident. However,the "Combining Limits Of Two Or More Autos Prohibited" section provides the answer: they maynot.

Plaintiffs raise several additional arguments that the policy is ambiguous. Plaintiffs complainthat the policy's general provisions state that "A coverage applies only when a premium for it isshown on the policy declarations." However, the "Combining Limits Of Two Or More AutosProhibited" section clearly provides that coverages may not be combined, "even though a separatepremium is charged for each of those autos." (Emphasis in original.) Thus, the ambiguity found inHall is not present here.

Plaintiffs next argue that the policy's definition of "underinsured motor vehicle" is confusing. The policy defines an underinsured motor vehicle as a vehicle that has liability coverage "but less thanthe applicable limit of liability for Coverage SS shown on your policy declarations." (Emphasis inoriginal.) Plaintiffs correctly point out that the declarations pages do not refer to coverage SS, butto "Uninsured Motorists Insurance," which includes "Underinsured Motorists Protection." However,part 5 of the policy, in which the above quoted definition appears, is entitled "Uninsured MotoristsInsurance Coverage SS." That the declarations pages use only one of two terms that are obviouslyintended to be equivalent does not mean that plaintiffs can stack the coverages applicable to bothvehicles. The rest of plaintiffs' argument on this point restates that the declarations pages areambiguous because they set forth the limits of liability multiple times.

Plaintiffs next contend that the antistacking clause is ambiguous because it refers to "the limitsof liability applicable to any one auto" rather than "the policy limits for one vehicle insured." Plaintiffsappear to contend that this could be read as referring only to liability coverage, not underinsuredmotorist coverage. Grzeszczak rejected a similar argument. The court held that a clause providingthat " 'the total limit of liability under all the policies shall not exceed the highest applicable limit ofliability under any one policy' " unambiguously prohibited stacking underinsured motorist coverages. Grzeszczak, 168 Ill. 2d at 220-21, 224-25. Further, in Allstate Insurance Co. v. Gonzalez-Loya, 226Ill. App. 3d 446, 452-53 (1992), the court held that virtually identical language in Allstate's policiesunambiguously prohibited stacking. Plaintiffs provide no persuasive reasons to depart from theseholdings.

Plaintiffs finally contend that the antistacking language in the "Limits of Liability" provisionsof part 5 is ambiguous. However, we have already held that the "Combining Limits Of Two Or MoreAutos Prohibited" section unambiguously prohibits stacking. In the absence of a direct conflictbetween the two, that the policy contains a second antistacking provision that is arguably less cleardoes not render the first antistacking provision ambiguous.

The judgment of the circuit court of Lake County is reversed.

Reversed.

O'MALLEY, P.J., and CALLUM, J., concur.