Court Opinion

ID: 9847436
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 03:59:42.790462+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:17:11.768419
License: Public Domain

Deen, Judge,
dissenting. A renewal of a policy of insurance contemplates that it is a policy issued in place of, for the same amount, and under the same terms and conditions as the original policy, but covering a different period of time. Long Bros. Grocery Co. v. U. S. F. & G. Co., 130 Mo. App. 421 (110 SW 29); De Jernette v. Fidelity & Cas. Co. of N. Y., 98 Ky. 558 (33 SW 828); Fla. Cent. & P. R. Co. v. Amer. Surety Co., 99 F 674; Springfield Fire &c. Ins. Co. v. Hubbs-Johnson Motor Co. (Tex. App.) 42 S. W. 2d 248; Schock v. Penn Tp. Mut. Fire Ins. Assn. of Lancaster Co., 148 Pa. Super. 77 (24 A2d 741).
Where over a period of years the plaintiff dealt with an insurance agency which wrote and delivered insurance policies to him in several different areas of coverage, and such agency had a general authority to renew insurance, payments being made not on a basis of specific delivery of policies but rather at periodic time intervals, and the agency automatically wrote and forwarded to the insured a renewal policy covering his interest as a homeowner, with the assurance that such policy and its predecessors afforded him "full coverage,” this constituted a representation by the agent that the policy was in fact a renewal of the previous policy (that is, subject to the same terms and conditions other than time of coverage) and that it afforded him full coverage. If such statement was made knowingly falsely with the purpose of deceiving the plaintiff and if he did in fact rely on it and was deceived thereby, and as a result of these facts suffered a monetary loss, he has shown facts which should be submitted to a jury in support of an action based on a wilful and intentional tort.
I am authorized to state that Chief Judge Bell and *176Judge Evans concur in this dissent.