O’Neal v. Allstate Insurance Co., 2023 WL 4704684

In an action for underinsured motorist coverage resulting from a vehicle-pedestrian accident, the defendant moved for summary judgment, asserting there was no genuine issue of material fact that the driver was not negligent. Additionally, even if the driver was negligent, his negligence was exceeded by the plaintiff’s negligence when crossing the roadway.

This court agreed and granted the defendant’s motion for summary judgment. Dashboard camera footage from a witness’s vehicle showed that the traffic light was green when the driver entered the intersection, thus eliminating any genuine issue of material fact.

The court gives great weight to the dashboard camera evidence because it does not present those perennial issues of reliability, accuracy, and potential bias of evidence that depends upon a person’s memory, like testimony and sworn statements.