This article was originally published on Americanbar.org, reprinted with permission.
Any attorney who has ever faced a claim in which a truck driver is injured while driving a truck for an insured has faced a wall of confusion. The standard Insurance Services Office (ISO) form commercial auto policy excludes coverage for injuries to employees of the insured. Due to the nature of trucking operations, motor carriers generally attempt to create an independent contractor relationship with drivers. Thus, when the carrier attempts to deny coverage under the standard employee exclusions, a messy and complex factual question arises, one that has confounded courts and practitioners for decades. In recent years, however, several federal courts have taken a new approach to this age-old question. Click here to visit the ABA website.