Opinion ID: 1312493
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: facts

Text: Preston Mutual Insurance Association (Preston Mutual) issued a home-guard insurance policy to Allen and Gloria Stahl. The policy was in effect on March 4, 1990, when their home in Clinton, Iowa, was destroyed by fire. Because the Stahls' marriage was ending, they filed separate claims with Preston Mutual for the fire loss. On June 28 Preston Mutual sent letters to both Gloria and Allen concerning their claims under the policy. Gloria's claim was approved and she was paid approximately fifty percent of the total policy limits. Allen's claim, however, was denied because its investigation revealed that he had intentionally misrepresented material facts and circumstances relating to the extent of the loss claimed under the insurance policy. Relying on a policy condition Preston Mutual declared the policy void as to Allen. The condition provided that the entire policy is void if an insured person has intentionally concealed or misrepresented any material fact or circumstance relating to this insurance. An attorney representing Allen Stahl (Stahl) sent a letter to Preston Mutual on July 30 requesting a detailed explanation of the facts and circumstances relating to the denial of Stahl's claim. On September 28 Preston Mutual submitted a detailed list of the items which were not found in the debris at the fire scene to Stahl's attorney. There was no further contact between the parties for more than a year. On February 3, 1992, Stahl filed a two-count petition against Preston Mutual claiming a breach of the insurance contract and a bad faith denial of his insurance claim. The insurer filed an answer and affirmative defenses to the petition. Preston Mutual later filed a motion for summary judgment claiming the one-year limitation of action provision in the fire insurance policy constituted a complete defense. Stahl's resistance claimed that (1) a bad faith claim was not an action for a breach of contract for purposes of the limitations clause, and (2) Preston Mutual was precluded from relying on the limitations clause because the policy had previously been declared void. Following a hearing on the motion the court ruled that (1) a bad faith claim based solely on the denial of a claim for benefits is an action on the policy and therefore must be brought within one year of the loss, and (2) Preston Mutual was not estopped from raising the policy's limitations clause as a defense to Stahl's claims. Accordingly, the court granted the motion for summary judgment and dismissed both counts of Stahl's petition. Stahl appeals. Summary judgment may only be granted when the entire record before the court shows that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Iowa R.Civ.P. 237(c). Thus, on appeal from a summary judgment ruling we must determine (1) whether a genuine issue of material fact exists and (2) if the law was correctly applied. Ottumwa Hous. Auth. v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co., 495 N.W.2d 723, 726 (Iowa 1993). A limitations of action defense may be raised by affirmative defense and motion for summary judgment. See Harden v. State, 434 N.W.2d 881, 883 (Iowa 1989).