Coburn v. Fireman's Fund Insurance Company

387 P.2d 598, 86 Idaho 415, 1963 Ida. LEXIS 281
CourtIdaho Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 19, 1963
Docket9376
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 387 P.2d 598 (Coburn v. Fireman's Fund Insurance Company) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Idaho Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Coburn v. Fireman's Fund Insurance Company, 387 P.2d 598, 86 Idaho 415, 1963 Ida. LEXIS 281 (Idaho 1963).

Opinion

SMITH, Justice.

Appellant (defendant) has appealed from a judgment of $10,908 rendered in favor of respondents (plaintiffs) by the district court of Butte County. The judgment was the result of an action brought by respondents for recovery of the value of their three-fourths interest in a stored crop of potatoes destroyed by fire, allegedly insured by a fire insurance policy issued by appellant. The potatoes were grown by respondents as tenants of O. T. and Ruby I. Jones, who retained the remaining one-fourth interest in the crop.

*418 Appellant, by answer and related instruments, admitted its issuance of the fire insurance policy, but resisted respondents’ claim on grounds that they were not named as insureds in the policy, and could not claim benefits arising thereunder. We shall briefly relate the facts.

The harvested crop consisted of approximately 7,000 sacks of potatoes valued at $15,000 which were stored in lessor O. T. Jones’s potato cellar near Arco. November 2, 1960, Jones applied to H. Michael Porter, in his capacity as appellant’s insurance agent in Arco (and who also was executive vice-president of Butte County Bank), for a $15,000 policy of fire insurance covering the stored potatoes. Mr. Porter, in his agency capacity, thereupon issued appellant’s fire insurance policy in the name of O. T. Jones for $15,000 insuring the entire stock of stored potatoes against loss by fire. Jones paid the policy premium, respondents agreeing to reimburse Jones three-fourths of such amount.

Loss of the stored potatoes by fire occurred December 31, 1960. On that date Jones submitted a statement of loss showing $14,-544.00 as the inventory value of the potatoes. Jones showed “insured’s interest” (one-fourth) to be the value of $3,636.00 which appellant paid and obtained his written release.

Thereafter, respondents submitted a sworn written statement of proof of loss, dated March 1, 1961, to appellant. Therein respondents recited that Jones owned an undivided one-fourth interest in the destroyed potatoes; and that they, respondents, owned the remaining undivided three-fourths interest of the value of $10,908, less approximately $1,000 which respondents owed to Jones, which he had advanced for expenses attendant to growing and harvesting the crop. Respondents, in their claim, alleged that they were bailors and beneficiaries of such three-fourths interest in the stock of potatoes, and which had been stored in the cellar of O. T. Jones, as bailee and trustee thereof. They referred to and submitted a copy of the written lease under which Jones leased to respondents the land upon which the potatoes were grown, and alleged that appellant’s agent, H. Michael Porter, was fully informed of respondents’ interest as owners of their portion of the potatoes covered by the insurance policy; that Jones, as bailee, had exclusive possession of the cellar and the stock of potatoes stored therein, including the three-fourths interest owned by respondents, and that the debt which respondents owed to Jones was to be paid out of respondents’ interest in the potatoes when sold.

Appellant rejected respondents’ claim, whereupon respondents commenced this action.

Respondents in their complaint alleged (1) that on November 2, 1960, Jones made *419 application to H. Michael Porter, appellant’s authorized insurance agent, for a policy of insurance on behalf of himself and respondents, insuring the stored crop of potatoes against fire loss; (2) that appellant issued the policy (in the name of O. T. Jones) covering the stock of potatoes in the amount of $15,000; (3) that appellant’s agent well knew of the respective interests of respondents, on the one hand, and of O. T. and Ruby I. Jones, on the other hand, and well knew that the Jones’s interest was but one-fourth of the total stored crop insured at $15,000; that appellant accepted premiums on the basis of insurance covering the combined interests of respondents and Jones, but that the agent “carelessly and negligently, or wilfully and fraudulently” failed or neglected to include respondents as insureds under the policy. Additionally respondents alleged (4) that the Joneses were bailees in sole control of the stored potato crop, and that because of that existent bailor-bailee relationship and because of the debt which respondent owed them, that the Joneses had “a substantial insurable interest in the entire stock of potatoes” which would enable them to insure the entire interests, — both their own and that of respondents.

The cause was tried and submitted to the trial court sitting without a jury. The court found that O. T. Jones was not a bailee, nor in sole control of the stock of potatoes; also, that appellant’s agent, Mr. Porter, had no specific knowledge of respondents’ interest in the potatoes. It then concluded:

“That O. T. Jones had such an insurable interest in the stock of potatoes in its entirety as to allow Mr. Jones to insure plaintiffs’ [respondents’] interest as well as his own.”

In support of such conclusion the court further concluded that appellant intended to insure the entire stock of potatoes; that full disclosure of the insurable quantity of the potatoes was made to appellant, and that appellant accepted an insurance premium based on the entire stock of potatoes with full knowledge as to what it was insuring; that appellant’s liability was not enlarged nor altered by a disclosure of respondents’ interest in the potatoes, from that liability which appellant contemplated and assumed at the time of its acceptance of the insurance premium; and that appellant did not tender to O. T. Jones the unearned premium, or the amount of his insurable interest in the entire stock of potatoes, or any sum other than one-fourth of the actual cash value of the stock of potatoes destroyed by fire.

Appellant’s assignments of error attack the findings of the trial court to the effect that O. T. Jones purchased the insurance for himself and respondents; also, to the effect that the insurance policy covered the interests in the potatoes of both Jones and *420 of respondents, rather than only the interest of Jones, appellant contending that the policy protected only Jones as named insured.

Appellant contends that Jones did not have an insurable interest in the entire stock of potatoes, but only to the extent of his one-fourth interest plus the debt of $1,000 owed to him by respondents. In support of such contention appellant refers to I.C. § 41 — 1806(3) enacted Sess.Laws ’61, ch. 330, § 398, p. 645, reading: “The measure of an insurable interest in property is the extent to which the insured might be directly damnified by loss, injury, or impairment thereof.” Inasmuch as the legislature adopted such enactment in 1961, after the issuance of the insurance policy and occurrence of the loss involved in this cause in 1960, and since the enactment constitutes substantive law, we cannot accord unto it a retroactive effect. Idaho Const., Art. 11, § 12; Rogers v. Hawley, 19 Idaho 751, 115 P. 687.

Appellant nevertheless argues that the 1961 enactment, I.C. § 41-1806(3), is but a declaration of the then existing law to the effect as provided in the enactment, citing Miller v. World Insurance Co., 76 Idaho 355,

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600 P.2d 1387 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1979)
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570 P.2d 1366 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1977)
Grasser v. First Security Bank
536 P.2d 749 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1975)
Corgatelli v. Globe Life & Accident Insurance Co.
533 P.2d 737 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1975)
Toevs v. Western Farm Bureau Life Insurance Co.
483 P.2d 682 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1971)
Transportation Equip. Rent. v. OREGON AUTO. INS. CO
478 P.2d 620 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1970)
Shields v. Hiram C. Gardner, Inc.
444 P.2d 38 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1968)
Boston Insurance Co. v. Beckett
419 P.2d 475 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1966)
Lively v. City of Blackfoot
416 P.2d 27 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1966)
Brahs v. Warren
410 P.2d 433 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1966)

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Bluebook (online)
387 P.2d 598, 86 Idaho 415, 1963 Ida. LEXIS 281, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/coburn-v-firemans-fund-insurance-company-idaho-1963.