Law Commons^™

Accidental Death Insurance Coverage Of Drunk Drivers , Michael E. Gardner

Missouri Law Review

Drunk driving causes the deaths of thousands of Americans each year. The drunk driver is often among those killed. This raises the questions of whether the beneficiaries of insured killed as a result of his own drunk driving can claim the proceeds of an accidental death and dismemberment insurance policy. The answer to this question depends on whether the drunk driver’s death is considered an “accident” for the first-party insurance coverage purposes. State and federal courts have largely split on this question. In Graddy v. Hartford Life Insurance Co., the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, …