Murphy v. Georgia Gen. Ins., 431 S.E.2d 147 (Ga. Ct. App. 1993). · Go Syfert
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Murphy v. Georgia Gen. Ins., 431 S.E.2d 147 (Ga. Ct. App. 1993). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
32 citation events (13 in the last 25 years) across 1 distinct court.
Strongest positive: American Alternative Insurance Company v. Bennett (gactapp, 2015-11-23)
Treatment trajectory · 1993 → 2026 · click a year to view as-of
1993 2009 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 5 distinct citers. How cited ↗
discussed Cited as authority (rule) American Alternative Insurance Company v. Bennett
Ga. Ct. App. · 2015 · confidence medium
Co., 208 Ga. App. 501, 502 ( 431 SE2d 147 ) (1993) (pipe allegedly falling from bed of unknown truck and striking windshield of insured vehicle did not meet physical contact requirement); Scott v. Allstate Ins.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Angela Reaves v. State Farm Mutual Automobile
Ga. Ct. App. · 2012 · confidence medium
In Murphy, the plaintiff was the only eyewitness to his own accident, and this Court found that he could not substitute his own “corroboration” for the independent eyewitness corroboration required by the statute where there is no physical contact.10 Here, the pertinent portion of OCGA § 33-7-11 (b) (2) provides only that the insured must show “actual physical contact. . . between the motor vehicle owned or operated by the unknown person and the person or property of the insured.” In a 9 208 Ga. App. 501, 501 ( 431 SE2d 147 ) (1998). 10 Id. 6 separate sentence dealing only with the la…
cited Cited as authority (rule) Reaves v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance
Ga. Ct. App. · 2012 · confidence medium
Id. 208 Ga. App. 501, 501 ( 431 SE2d 147 ) (1998).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Hohman v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Automobile Insurance
Ga. Ct. App. · 2007 · confidence medium
Co., 208 Ga. App. 501, 502 ( 431 SE2d 147 ) (1993): Plaintiffs reliance on our... decision in State Farm Fire &c.
cited Cited as authority (rule) Fisher v. Clarendon National Insurance
Ga. Ct. App. · 1993 · confidence medium
Co., 208 Ga. App. 501, 502 ( 431 SE2d 147 ) (1993).
Retrieving the full opinion text from the archive…
Murphy
v.
Georgia General Insurance Company
A93A0260.
Court of Appeals of Georgia.
Apr 19, 1993.
431 S.E.2d 147
1993 Ga. App. LEXIS 587
Dozier, Akin, Lee & Graham, Neal B. Graham, for appellant., Greer, Klosik & Daugherty, Robert J. McCune, for appellee.
Pope, Birdsong, Andrews.
Cited by 13 opinions  |  Published
Pope, Chief Judge.

Plaintiff/appellant Robert Murphy appeals the grant of summary judgment to Georgia General Insurance Company (“Georgia General”), plaintiff’s uninsured motorist carrier. Plaintiff filed suit against a John Doe defendant, the driver of an unknown truck, seeking to[*502] recover damages stemming from an accident occurring on April 23, 1991 in which plaintiff contends a pipe fell from the bed of the unknown truck, struck the windshield of his vehicle and caused him to lose control of his vehicle. It is undisputed that plaintiff is the only eyewitness to this accident. Georgia General answered the complaint and filed a motion for summary judgment.

Decided April 19, 1993. Dozier, Akin, Lee & Graham, Neal B. Graham, for appellant. Greer, Klosik & Daugherty, Robert J. McCune, for appellee.

The trial court correctly granted Georgia General’s motion for summary judgment. This case is controlled by our decision in Scott v. Allstate Ins. Co., 200 Ga. App. 296 (407 SE2d 492) (1991). In this case, as in Scott, the plaintiff cannot prevail on his uninsured motorist claim against John Doe because there was no physical contact between the plaintiffs vehicle and the John Doe truck and plaintiff’s description of how the accident occurred was not corroborated by another eyewitness to the occurrence. Id. at 297; see OCGA § 33-7-11 (b) (2). Contrary to plaintiff’s contention otherwise, it is now well-settled that the corroboration requirement set forth in OCGA § 33-7-11 (b) (2) can only be met by the testimony of an eyewitness to the occurrence and not by circumstantial evidence, including statements given by the plaintiff to police, testimony of the plaintiff in both affidavits and depositions and/or physical damage to the plaintiff’s automobile. See Universal Security Ins. Co. v. Lowery, 257 Ga. 363 (359 SE2d 898) (1987); Scott, 200 Ga. App. at 297.

Plaintiff’s reliance on our recent decision in State Farm Fire &c. Co. v. Guest, 203 Ga. App. 711 (417 SE2d 419) (1992) is misplaced, both because Guest offers only physical precedent and this case is factually distinguishable from Guest. In Guest, the plaintiffs vehicle struck an “integral part” (a tire assembly) of an unknown vehicle. Id. at 711. In this case, however, plaintiff’s vehicle struck a pipe which he alleges was being transported as cargo and fell off an unknown truck. The pipe clearly is not a component or “integral part” of the unknown truck. Accordingly, plaintiff’s argument that this case is governed by Guest must fail.

Judgment affirmed.

Birdsong, P. J., and Andrews, J., concur.