Opinion ID: 1194109
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: completed order forms

Text: Category B contains completed forms by which the insurance company petitioners ordered services from Factual Service Bureau. Petitioners contend that these documents are privileged under the rationale of Bellmann v. District Court, 187 Colo. 350, 531 P.2d 632 (1975). In Bellmann we held that the statement given by an insured to an employee of his insurance company was protected under the attorney-client privilege because of the contractual obligations between the insured and insurer. The Dairyland contract requires the company to defend the petitioner in civil suits such as were filed against him shortly after the accident. Pursuant to this provision, Dairyland retained a local law firm to represent petitioner in these civil matters. Since control of petitioner's defense rested entirely with Dairyland and counsel retained by them, we hold that the insurance investigator who took the petitioner's statement was, in effect, an agent of the attorneys for the purpose of acquiring and transmitting this information to them. As such, the communication falls within the attorney-client relationship and is therefore privileged. Id. The effect of our holding was to cast the insured in the role of client, and the insurance company investigator as an agent of the attorney. The Bellmann case is consistent with the cases holding that in order to come within the protection of the privilege, there must be a communication between the client, i. e., insured, and his attorney or the attorney's agent, i. e., an insurance company. The communication in the documents included in category B is not between an insured (client) and his insurance company (attorney's agent). Therefore, the documents are not privileged under Bellmann.