Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-alsd-2_06-cv-00258/USCOURTS-alsd-2_06-cv-00258-1/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
John Jackson
Defendant
Patrick S. Parr
Plaintiff
State Farm Fire and Casualty Company
Defendant

Document Text:

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA

NORTHERN DIVISION

PATRICK S. PARR, )

 )

Plaintiff, )

 )

v. ) CIVIL ACTION 06-0258-WS-C

 )

JOHN JACKSON, et al., )

 )

Defendants. )

ORDER

This matter is before the Court on the motion of defendant State Farm Fire and Casualty

Company (“State Farm”) to dismiss Count Four of the complaint. (Doc. 3). The plaintiff

declined the Court’s invitation to respond, (Doc. 7), and the motion is ripe for resolution. 

Count Four alleges that State Farm “negligently and/or wantonly caused Plaintiff to

suffer damages.” (Doc. 1, Exhibit B at 6, ¶ 29). Count Four does not expressly identify the

respect in which State Farm acted negligently and/or wantonly, but it does incorporate by

reference the preceding paragraphs of the complaint. (Id., ¶ 28). Those paragraphs allege that

the plaintiff’s residence was damaged by fire and that State Farm breached the contract and

committed fraud and bad faith by failing to pay the plaintiff’s resulting claim. (Id., ¶¶ 12, 15, 18,

26). It is thus clear that Count Four alleges that State Farm negligently and/or wantonly handled,

or failed to pay, the plaintiff’s claim. 

“[M]ere negligence or mistake is not sufficient to support a claim of bad faith; there must

be a refusal to pay, coupled with a conscious intent to injure.” Ex parte Government Employees

Insurance Co., 729 So. 2d 299, 306 (Ala. 1999). That is, “[b]ad faith is an intentional tort ....” 

Jones v. Alfa Mutual Insurance Co., 875 So. 2d 1189, 1193 (Ala. 2003). Moreover, “[t]his

Court has consistently refused to recognize a cause of action for the negligent handling of

insurance claims.” Pate v. Rollison Logging Equipment, Inc., 628 So. 2d 337, 345 (Ala. 1993). 

Likewise, “this Court ... will not recognize a cause of action for alleged wanton handling of

insurance claims.” Kervin v. Southern Guaranty Insurance Co., 667 So. 2d 704, 706 (Ala.

1995). 

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In short, the Alabama Supreme Court has explicitly rejected as non-existent the very

causes of action the plaintiff attempts to bring under Count Four. Accordingly, State Farm’s

motion to dismiss is granted, and Count Four is dismissed. Because the plaintiff is represented

by counsel but has not attempted to amend the complaint, this dismissal is without leave to

amend. Wagner v. Daewoo Heavy Industries America Corp., 314 F.3d 541, 542 (11th Cir.

2002)(en banc). 

 

DONE and ORDERED this 16th day of May, 2006.

s/ WILLIAM H. STEELE

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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