Allied Reserve Life Insurance Company v. Pierson

1960 OK 237, 357 P.2d 205, 1960 Okla. LEXIS 494
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedNovember 15, 1960
Docket38843
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 1960 OK 237 (Allied Reserve Life Insurance Company v. Pierson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Allied Reserve Life Insurance Company v. Pierson, 1960 OK 237, 357 P.2d 205, 1960 Okla. LEXIS 494 (Okla. 1960).

Opinion

BLACKBIRD, Justice.

This appeal involves an action to enforce, and/or recover upon, two insurance policies issued to the late Alta H. Chilton of Woodward, Oklahoma, .by Reserve Life Insurance Company, of, Dallas, Texas. One of the policies is denominated a “Hospital And Surgical .Expense” policy — the other is a “Hospital Room” policy.

*207 Miss Chilton’s separate applications for these two policies were obtained for said insuring company by one J. H. Pewitt, one of its "itinerant” agents, in March, 1955, when Miss Chilton, a former insurance agent herself, was 65 or 66 years of age and had suffered from, and been treated in the McBride Clinic at Oklahoma City for, chronic arthritis over a period of more than 15 years.

The blanks for answer to the questions appearing on the printed application forms {designed for use either by individuals or family groups) were written, or filled, in by Pewitt’s handwriting, though Miss Chil-ton’s signature appears on the line provided therefor at the bottom thereof. The form’s questions numbered “6”, “8”, and “9”, together with their handwritten answers, are in words and figures substantially as follows :

“6. Are you and all other members of the Family Group to be insured now in good health and free from any phys-Yes ical or mental defect?.
“8X Have you, or any member of the Fahsily Group to be insured ever had any Sesease of the heart, lungs, kidneys, stomach, or bladder; or high blood pressures paralysis, arthritis, syphilis, cancer, dihbetes, hernia, goitre, or rectal disease?. i\... .'⅞. * * * hN. * *
“9. Have you, or any\nember of the Family Group to be insured, received medical or surgical advice or treatment within the past th«e years?.. A. H. cX

Across that part of the applications in which questions “8” and “9” appear, a diagonal line was drawn, and Miss Chilton’s initials were written, in ink in substantially the same positions as depicted above.

Subsequently, in June, 1956, Allied Reserve Life Insurance Company of Oklahoma City, plaintiff in error herein, assumed the position of insurer in Miss •Chilton’s policies (together with others issued to Oklahoma residents by the afore-named original insurer) and issued to her on each policy an “Assumption Certificate” in which it promised, in substance, to carry out all of the provisions of said policies, if the insured complied with her obligations thereunder and continued payment of the premiums.

In July, 1957, Miss Chilton was again hospitalized for her arthritis, and plaintiff in error paid a claim for hospital expenses she forwarded to it. In connection with said claim, said company was furnished with a medical report denominating the illness for which she was hospitalized as "chronic arthritis”, and reflecting the fact of its long existence.

In August of the same year, Miss Chil-ton was again hospitalized — this time in a Woodward hospital — at the direction of her physician, a Dr. D, who examined her on a call to her residence, August 11, 1957, and diagnosed her as having “chronic myocarditis with decomposition” or “cardiac decomposition”, in addition to her other ailments. After her period of hospitalization, which began 3 days later, or August 14th, terminated the following October, Miss Chilton was removed to a Woodward rest home. By this time, a claim for part of Miss Chilton’s expenses in connection with this hospitalization had been made on her behalf, against plaintiff in error, which had rejected it and refused payment, and started an investigation of her health history and medical records.

Toward, or after, the end of this investigation, plaintiff in error engaged Retail Credit Company, through its Claim Director, Ross Wood, of Oklahoma City, to contact Miss Chilton for the obvious purpose of settling said claim. Pursuant to said employment, Wood went to'Woodward on December 28, 1957, visited Miss Chilton in her room at the rest home, and in consideration for his delivery to her of a draft on plaintiff in error for $129.10 refunding premiums Miss Chilton had paid on the subject policy (since satisfaction of her previous smaller claim) obtained her ex *208 ecution of a general release of all claims thereunder. The draft was paid on Miss Chilton’s endorsement four days later, and 8 days thereafter, on January 9, 1958, County Court proceedings were instituted by Mrs. Dorothy Pierson, for the appointment of a guardian for Miss Chilton. In said proceedings, Miss Chilton was declared legally incompetent by order of court entered January 15, 1958, and, by the same order, Mrs. Pierson was appointed guardian of said incompetent’s person and estate.

The present action was thereafter instituted in June, 1958, by Mrs. Pierson, as guardian, on "Miss Chilton’s behalf, against plaintiff in error, as defendant, to compel payment of the claim said defendant had theretofore rejected, as aforesaid. Before the cause was at issue, Miss Chilton died in September, 1958; Mrs. Pierson was thereafter appointed administratrix of her estate; and this cause was then revived in her name as such. In this capacity, she will hereinafter be referred to as plaintiff, and Allied Reserve Insurance Company will be referred to as defendant, as they appeared in the trial court.

By an amended petition thereafter filed, plaintiff alleged some of the material facts already herein related, and sought judgment in the total sum of $523 as that part of the deceased Miss Chilton’s medical, hospital, and ambulance expenses, which defendant was allegedly obligated to pay under the terms of the subject policies.

In its answer, and the supplement and amendment thereto, defendant denied generally the allegations of plaintiff’s petition not specifically admitted therein, and, in substance specifically alleged:

(1)That the ailments, on account of which the insured’s medical and hospital expenses were incurred, were not such as resulted, under the policies’ “insuring” provisions “ * * * from sickness the cause of which originates while this policy is in force and effect and more than 15 days after the date hereof * *
(2) That defendant was not liable under the policies for the further reason that they were issued in reliance upon the representations, as to Miss Chilton’s health and medical history, contained in the hereinbefore quoted portions of her applications for the policies, which representations were false; and
(3) That if any liability was ever incurred by reason of the issuance of said policies, it was terminated and obliterated by said insured’s execution and delivery of the hereinbefore mentioned release. (Emphasis ours.)

In her reply, and the amendment thereto, plaintiff pointed out that the answers to the questions on the applications for the policies, (which defendant’s answer characterized as “misrepresentations” on the part of Miss Chilton) were written by the insurer’s agent, P-ewitt, and alleged that defendant was estopped to deny they were false or incorrect.

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1960 OK 237, 357 P.2d 205, 1960 Okla. LEXIS 494, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/allied-reserve-life-insurance-company-v-pierson-okla-1960.