Delaware American International Life Insurance v. Wood

630 F. Supp. 364, 1984 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20021
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Georgia
DecidedJanuary 27, 1984
DocketCiv. A. No. C82-1899A
StatusPublished

This text of 630 F. Supp. 364 (Delaware American International Life Insurance v. Wood) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Delaware American International Life Insurance v. Wood, 630 F. Supp. 364, 1984 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20021 (N.D. Ga. 1984).

Opinion

ORDER

MOYE, Chief Judge.

Before the Court in the above-styled civil action are cross-motions for complete or partial summary judgment, a motion to strike the affidavit of Ronald Kutney, and a motion by the defendant to compel discovery and for sanctions.

Part I — Background

This is a diversity action involving coverage of $75,000.00 on the life of Kristofer Lee Wood [“Kristofer”] who died at the age of twenty-two of respiratory failure resulting from muscular dystrophy.

The plaintiff, Delaware American International Life Insurance Company [“Delaware American” ] filed this action seeking a declaratory judgment that the coverage is void ab initio on the grounds that the coverage was not obtained by application or written consent of the insured as required by O.C.G.A. § 33-24-6 (Ga.Code Ann. § 56-2407), or in the alternative, that the applications contained material misrepresentations as prohibited by O.C.G.A. § 33-24-7 (Ga.Code Ann. § 56-2409). By way of counterclaim, the defendant, Ross J. Wood [“Wood”], seeks full payment of the coverage on the ground that at this time the coverage is incontestable. Wood also seeks a 25% bad faith penalty and reasonable attorney’s fees under O.C.G.A. § 33-4-6 (Ga.Code Ann. § 56-1206) because Delaware American has refused to pay the proceeds.

The first application for insurance contained various representations as to Kristofer’s health, was purportedly signed by “Kris L. Wood,” and was dated March 25, 1979. The application also named Wood as beneficiary. Pursuant to and in reliance upon that application, Delaware American issued certificate no. 00708152, evidencing a face value of $50,000.00. Affidavit of Mr. Kutney, vice president of underwriting for Delaware American. The March 25, 1979 application contained the following pertinent questions and answers:

11. Have you consulted a physician for any illness during the past five years ... or do you know of any impairment in your health or physical condition? Answer: No.
12. Have you ever been treated for or told of any heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, lung disease, cancer, ulcer or any other serious disorder? • Answer: No.

[366]*366In addition, the policy contained the following incontestability clause:

Except for nonpayment of premiums, this policy shall be incontestable after it has been in force during the lifetime of the insured for a period of two years from its date of issue.

The second application basically reaffirmed the health representations made in the first application. The second application was again purportedly signed by “Kris L. Wood,” and it was dated May 2, 1981. The second application or “Additional Coverage Activator Form” contained the following language:

Request hereby is made by the undersigned [Kris L. Wood] to increase the Life Insurance Benefits presently in-force under the Policy or Certificate indicated above [# 007008152 — number of first certificate] in the amount of the Coverage Option selected [$75,000.00] ... I further state there has been no change in the condition of my health since the date of my original application for this Life Insurance except as outlined below [the outline was left blank].

After a new underwriting effort relying on the representations in the second application that his condition was the same as represented in the original application, Delaware American issued a second certificate, no'. 7008152U, on September 1, 1981. Kutney Affidavit.

The Delaware American certificates were issued in the following sequence:

Date of Application Date of Issue Pace Value

1st Certificate 3-25-79 7-1-79 $50,000.00

2nd Certificate 5-2-81 9-1-81 $75,000.00

The instant case is but one of six similar

actions involving insurance coverage of Kristofer’s life before this Court. The insurance companies estimate that Kristofer was insured by approximately fifteen companies with total coverage exceeding one-half million dollars. The Court briefly describes the similar actions in Part I of this Court’s order in Guarantee Trust Life Insurance Company v. Wood, 631 F.Supp. 15 (N.D.Ga.1984).

In addition, this Court incorporates by reference and adopts into this opinion Part 1 § B of the Guarantee Trust order that sets out a history of the development of muscular dystrophy during Kristofer’s life.

Part II

Section A

The Court first addresses Delaware American’s argument that the contracted insurance coverage is void ab initio because Kristofer, the insured, neither signed the application nor consented in writing to the issuance of the coverage under O.C.G.A. § 33-24-6(a) (Ga.Code Ann. § 56-2407). Section 33-24-6(a) reads in relevant part as follows:

No life ... insurance contract upon an individual, except a contract of group life insurance ..., shall be made or effectuated unless at the time of the making of the contract the individual insured ... applies for a life ... insurance contract or consents in writing to the contract____

The thrust of Wood’s opposition to the argument is that the statute is not applicable to the instant coverage because the statute explicitly excludes its application to group policies and because Delaware American is barred from raising this argument in light of the incontestability clause contained in the initial certificate.

Delaware American points out that this case does not involve “pure group” insurance covering a number of individuals by means of a single or blanket insurance policy in which individuals do not specifically apply for certain coverage. Rather, Delaware American points out that the insurance at bar was issued as a trusted group policy in which an individual applies for the coverage of his choice and each application undergoes separate underwriting, as in the case of individual insurance. Delaware American maintains that the trust group policy at bar falls squarely within the intended meaning of the legislative protection afforded individual insureds in individual insurance contracts under section 33-24-6(a).

[367]*367The Court in the case of Connecticut General Life Insurance Company v. Wood, 631 F.Supp.

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Related

Connecticut General Life Insurance v. Wood
631 F. Supp. 9 (N.D. Georgia, 1984)
Guarantee Trust Life Insurance v. Wood
631 F. Supp. 15 (N.D. Georgia, 1984)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
630 F. Supp. 364, 1984 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20021, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/delaware-american-international-life-insurance-v-wood-gand-1984.