EAST ST. LOUIS - An insurance company is asking a federal court to find that it is not liable for damages following a 2020 crash on I-57 in Franklin County.
Auto-Owners Insurance Company sued Motor Carrier Consultants Inc., Hirschbach Motor Lines Inc. and Eric Jerome Campbell Sr. in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.
"This is an insurance coverage dispute between Auto-Owners and MCC," the lawsuit states. "In this action, Auto-Owners seeks a declaration that it has no duty to defend or indemnify MCC under a General Liability Policy in connection with a third-party complaint filed in two suits that have been consolidated."
According to the complaint, Auto-Owners issued a liability policy to MCC. Auto-Owners claims in the lawsuit that liability as a result of providing "professional services" is not covered under the policy.
"MCC received a monthly fee for monitoring driver duty status, administering drug and alcohol testing, and monitoring driver records," the suit states.
MCC is being sued in an underlying lawsuit by two people injured in a 2020 collision. The suit alleges MCC failed to provide the services it was paid to perform.
"MCC has requested coverage from Auto-Owners for the underlying third party complaint," the suit states. "Auto-Owners contends that it has no obligation to defend or indemnify MCC against the Underlying Third Party Complaint."
The insurance company is represented in this lawsuit by attorney Timothy Young of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP in Chicago.
Auto-Owners Insurance Company v. Motor Carrier Consultants, Inc. et al. U.S. District Court, Southern District of Illinois, 3:22-cv-01225