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Par for the Course: Golf-Cart Accidents

What happens when the golf cart you're driving runs intoor overa fellow golfer?

By David D. Thamann | Updated on August 20, 2012
Being a once-in-a-while golfer, I was interested in an article I received from CED Investigative Technologies concerning the rise in golf-cart accidents. According to the article, a local woman in Selma, Ind., died in a golf-cart accident that the coroner called an extremely tragic freak accident; and in Franklin, Tenn., a 15-year-old boy was killed and three other teens injured in a golf-cart crash. From personal experience, I can say that a good friend of ours had her shoulder shattered when she was hit by a golf cart while on the course.

Now, golf carts are supposed to be safe vehicles, even as we drive them without much concern all over the golf course (and off the golf path). But I doubt if there are many (if any) regulations on the safety or use of the carts. So, accidents and resulting injuries are going to occur, and the questions then arise: Who is responsible, and who is going to pay for the injury claims?

Read More FC&S Blog Posts at the Coverage Cafe

Suppose the golf-course owner is held responsible. Presumably, the owner has a General Liability policy or a specialized golf-course policy to cover liability claims. The standard Commercial General Liability coverage form would respond to any liability claim arising out of the ownership or use of a golf cart. An insurer might dispute coverage by asserting that the golf cart is an auto since it is a land motor vehicle. However, a more reasonable interpretation is the counterassertion that the golf cart is mobile equipment (and thus covered under the General Liability form) since it is designed for use principally off public roads.

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