Daniels v. Colonial Insurance

857 S.W.2d 162, 314 Ark. 49
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedJuly 12, 1993
Docket92-1389
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 857 S.W.2d 162 (Daniels v. Colonial Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Daniels v. Colonial Insurance, 857 S.W.2d 162, 314 Ark. 49 (Ark. 1993).

Opinion

Robert L. Brown, Justice.

This case is an appeal from a summary judgment in favor of the appellee, Colonial Insurance Company. The appellant, Melvin Ricky Daniels, raises several issues of material facts which, he contends, remain to be decided. We disagree that the circuit court erred in rendering summary judgment, and we affirm.

On July 21,1988, the appellant’s wife, Sherri Daniels, went to the Colonial offices in Camden at the appellant’s request to purchase car insurance. Colonial’s agent, M.H. Woodring, assisted her in completing an application that was two pages long. On the first page of the application the appellant was shown as owner of the automobile. On the same page, both Sherri Daniels and the appellant were listed as “drivers in household.” Each was further shown as “living with spouse.”

On the second page of the application there was a heading which read “COVERAGE REJECTION STATEMENTS — MUST BE SIGNED BY NAMED INSURED IF COVERAGE NOT PURCHASED.” Below that was a paragraph entitled “UNDERINSURED MOTORIST BODILY INJURY COVERAGE REJECTION STATEMENT.” This paragraph stated that underinsured motorist coverage had been explained to the applicant and that the applicant had rejected it. Sherri Daniels signed at the end of that rejection paragraph as applicant. Sherri Daniels’s and Mr. Woodring’s signatures also appear at the end of the application, with Sherri Daniels again designated as the applicant.

Colonial prepared a Declarations Page, which set forth the policy coverages as requested by Sherri Daniels and designated the appellant as the named insured. Underinsured motorist coverage was not included. The policy itself included the following under “Definitions:”

2. You and your mean the policyholder named in the Declarations and spouse if living in the household.

The appellant renewed the policy on the same terms as originally issued once every two months over the next two years, or 12 times. At no time after the application date did the appellant ask that underinsured motorist coverage be added. Nor was an additional premium paid for that coverage.

On July 20, 1990, while operating his 1986 Nissan pick-up truck in Ouachita County, the appellant was involved in an automobile accident with a third party. The medical expense resulting from appellant’s injuries exceeded $50,000.00. The third party was responsible for the accident and had maximum coverage of $25,000.00, which was paid. The appellant thereafter sought to collect the remaining $25,000.00 from Colonial under his alleged underinsured motorist coverage. Colonial refused to pay the $25,000.00 on the basis that the appellant through a named insured, Sherri Daniels, had expressly waived the coverage.

On June 6,1991, the appellant filed a declaratory judgment action against Colonial, contending that he was entitled to $25,000.00 as underinsured motorist benefits and that Colonial had refused his demand. As part of discovery, the appellant answered Colonial’s interrogatories and stated that his “estranged wife” had filled out the application for insurance on July 21,1988. He admitted in those same answers that he asked her to obtain insurance for his vehicle, but he denied that he authorized her to waive any insurance. The appellant also stated that he had never received the Declarations Page which informed him about what coverage he had or the policy itself. He admitted that he had received a copy of the insurance application, which was attached as Exhibit “A” to his interrogatory responses.

Colonial answered and moved for summary judgment on several bases, including the fact that Sherri Daniels was an insured who could reject the underinsured motorist coverage. The appellant also moved for summary judgment and urged that he was the sole named insured and had never waived underinsured motorist coverage as required by the application.

The circuit court awarded summary judgment to Colonial and found that the appellant authorized Sherri Daniels, his wife, to buy car insurance for him; the appellant received a copy of the application completed by his wife; the appellant was not charged for underinsured motorist coverage; and the policy did not provide such coverage. The court concluded that Sherri Daniels was an insured under the policy who had the right to reject the underinsured motorist coverage.

For his first point, the appellant argues that various material questions of fact remain to be decided rendering summary judgment inappropriate. He also contends that Sherri Daniels was not the named insured and, thus, could not reject coverage.

We have recently summarized our standards for summary judgment review:

In these cases, we need only decide if the granting of summary judgment was appropriate based on whether the evidentiary items presented by the moving party in support of the motion left a material question of fact unanswered. Nixon v. H & C Elec. Co., 307 Ark. 154, 818 S.W.2d 251 (1991). The burden of sustaining a motion for summary judgment is always the responsibility of the moving party. Cordes v. Outdoor Living Center, Inc., 301 Ark. 26, 781 S.W.2d 31 (1989). All proof submitted must be viewed in a light most favorable to the party resisting the motion, and any doubts and inferences must be resolved against the moving party. Lovell v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co., 310 Ark. 791, 839 S.W.2d 222 (1992); Harvison v. Charles E. Davis & Assoc., 310 Ark. 104, 835 S.W.2d 284 (1992); Reagan v. City of Piggott, 305 Ark. 77, 805 S.W.2d 636 (1991). Our rule states, and we have acknowledged, that summary judgment is proper when a claiming party fails to show that there is a genuine issue as to material fact and when the moving party is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. Ark. R. Civ. P. 56(c); Short v. Little Rock Dodge, Inc., 297 Ark. 104, 759 S.W.2d 553 (1988); see also Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317 (1986).

Forrest City Mach. Works v. Mosbacher, 312 Ark. 578, 583, 851 S.W.2d 443 (1993); Higginbottom v. Waugh, 313 Ark. 558, 856 S.W.2d 7 (1993).

We agree with the circuit court that Sherri Daniels was a named insured who could reject the coverage at issue as stated in the application. The appellant contends that because he is listed on the Declarations Page as the named insured, he is the only named insured who could waive coverage.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Williams v. State
225 S.W.3d 389 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2006)
Magee v. Garry-Magee
833 N.E.2d 1083 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 2005)
United States Fidelity & Guaranty Co. v. Continental Casualty Co.
120 S.W.3d 556 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2003)
Old American County Mutual Fire Insurance Co. v. Sanchez
81 S.W.3d 452 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2002)
Ramirez v. White County Circuit Court
38 S.W.3d 298 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2001)
Fratesi v. Fogleman
32 S.W.3d 38 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2000)
Bharodia v. Pledger
11 S.W.3d 540 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2000)
Bharodia v. Pledger
990 S.W.2d 581 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 1999)
Oglesby v. Baptist Medical System
891 S.W.2d 48 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1995)
Wise Co., Inc. v. CLAY CIRCUIT, EASTERN DIST.
869 S.W.2d 6 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1994)
Smith v. Stevens
855 S.W.2d 323 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1993)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
857 S.W.2d 162, 314 Ark. 49, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/daniels-v-colonial-insurance-ark-1993.