UCPB General Insurance, Co., Inc. v. Pascual Liner Inc.

 

UCPB General Insurance, Co., Inc. v. Pascual Liner Inc.

G.R. No. 242328

April 26, 2021

 

FACTS:

United Coconut Planters Bank General Insurance Co. (UCPB-GI) provided Rommel Lojo with a Comprehensive Insurance Policy for his sedan. The insured vehicle was involved in a collision from which it suffered significant damage. Lojo then filed a claim with UCPB-GI, which paid P520,000. He then issued a Release Claim in UCPB-GI’s favor, including a waiver of all his rights to the insured vehicle. As it was subrogated to the rights of Lojo, UCPB-GI filed a Complaint for Sum of Money before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) against Pascual Liner and the driver of the bus Leopoldo Cadavino. It asked the court to order respondent and Cadavido to pay the amount of Three P350,000.00 equivalent to the amount it paid to Lojo minus the salvage value. The case was later granted transmission to the Metropolitan Trial Court (MeTC) as the value of the demand falls within its jurisdiction. There, the MeTC, while initially dismissing the case due to jurisdictional issues, later ruled in favor of UCPB-GI, saying the bus driver was negligent by application of the doctrine of res ipsa loquitor on the facts indicated on the Traffic Accident Report and Traffic Accident Sketch. However, the CA favored the respondent when it asserted that the aforementioned report and sketch were not categorical in proving its negligence or that of its employee, adding that the same failed to meet the requisites to be exempt from the hearsay rule for failure to present the police and traffic officers who prepared them.

ISSUE:

Whether the Court of Appeals erred in not applying the doctrine of res ipsa loquitor.

HELD:

Yes, the Court of Appeals erred in not applying the doctrine of res ipsa loquitor. The doctrine of res ipsa loquitor is an exception to the rule that hearsay evidence is devoid of probative value. This is because the doctrine of res ipsa loquitor establishes a rule on negligence, whether the evidence is subjected to crossexamination or not. The applicability of the doctrine of res ipsa loquitor establishes a presumption of negligence based on the occurrence of the incident in itself. In cases involving vehicular accidents, it is sufficient that the accident itself be established, and once established through the admission of evidence, hearsay or not, the rule on res ipsa loquitor already starts to apply. In this case, the admission of the Traffic Accident Report and Traffic Accident Sketch was uncontested. This allowed their admission into evidence and establishment of the accident itself; this, inturn, paved the way for the rule on res ipsa loquitor to apply. Based on the Traffic Accident Report, the insured vehicle was hit at the right side of its rear due to the impact of collision from the right side of the front of the bus driven by Cadavino. This caused it to be pushed toward the left lane, and in turn hit an aluminum van that was in front. As Cadavino failed to take the necessary precautions, it was him who set into motion the vehicles that caused the vehicular accident. Meanwhile, the Traffic Accident Sketch bore the signature of Cadavido as the driver of the Pascual Liner bus. There was nothing from the pleadings to show that the respondent made a denial of this fact. Cadavido's signature on the said sketch served as an admission of the location of the damage caused by the collision and the positions of the vehicles involved.