Guarantee Life Ins. Co. v. Evert

178 S.W. 643, 1915 Tex. App. LEXIS 788
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 24, 1915
DocketNo. 8167.
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 178 S.W. 643 (Guarantee Life Ins. Co. v. Evert) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Guarantee Life Ins. Co. v. Evert, 178 S.W. 643, 1915 Tex. App. LEXIS 788 (Tex. Ct. App. 1915).

Opinions

8224 Writ of error pending in Supreme Court. *Page 644 The Guarantee Life Insurance Company issued to William H. Matthews a life insurance policy, by the terms of which Henry B. Evert was named as beneficiary. The insured having died, Evert instituted this suit against the company to collect the policy, and, from a judgment in his favor, the defendant has appealed.

The trial was by the court without the aid of a jury, and the following are the trial judge's findings of fact and conclusions of law, omitting the unnecessary repetition of such expressions as "I find that," with which nearly every sentence in the findings of fact begins:

"Findings of Fact.
"(1) The policy of insurance described in plaintiff's petition was issued by the defendant company on July 31, 1912, insuring the life of William H. Matthews in the sum of $1,000, payable to the plaintiff as the beneficiary.

"(2) The insured William H. Matthews died on June 11, 1913, having up to that time paid all premiums on said policy that had accrued or become due thereon.

"(3) The policy of insurance in question was procured and taken out by the insured in good faith, at a time when he believed himself to be and in fact was in a state of good health.

"(4) The insured, in making the application for said insurance, answered and stated truthfully all questions and matters that were material to the risk, and all questions or matters not fully or truthfully answered or stated by him in said application were not material to the risk, and did not influence the issuance of the policy. The answers and statements made by insured therein, to the effect that he had resided at Decatur, route No. 5, all his life, and that he had consulted no physician, were the only answers or statements of said insured that were in any respect not full or true. Insured was not then and had not been afflicted with any disease of a serious nature or of such nature as to affect the desirability of said Matthews as a proper and suitable risk for life insurance; and if all the true facts had been fully and truthfully stated by the insured in said application, and a full investigation of such facts had been made by the insurer, nothing would have been disclosed affecting the suitability of said Matthews as an insurable risk. If the true facts relative to the consultation of a physician by said Matthews and his taking treatment as a result of such consultation had been thus fully disclosed, and the truth stated by all those knowing of such consultations, treatments, and physical condition of the said Matthews, for which said consultations and treatments were had, nothing would have been shown in the way of a disease of a serious nature, or of such nature as to be material to the risk; said consultations and treatments relating only to temporary ills common to humanity, and having no serious or permanent effect. If said insured had answered fully as to where he had formerly resided, and this had been followed by investigation by defendant, nothing would have been disclosed affecting the desirability of said Matthews as an applicant for insurance.

"(5) The said Matthews had not been affected with any of the diseases mentioned in said application, and he was at the time of the making of said application and the issuance of said policy, and was usually, in good health, and believed himself to be, and in fact was, physically sound.

"(6) The defendant is a life insurance company, within the meaning of article 4746, Revised Statutes 1911. It failed to pay the loss or amount due the beneficiary on said policy within 30 days after demand was made therefor. One hundred and fifty dollars is a reasonable *Page 645 attorney's fee for prosecuting this suit on behalf of said beneficiary for the recovery and collection of said loss.

"Conclusions of Law.
"It appearing to the court that no misrepresentations had been made, either material to the risk or actually contributing to the contingency or event on which said policy became due and payable, I conclude that the plaintiff is entitled to recover of the defendant the $1,000 provided for in said policy, and the defendant company having failed to pay said loss within 30 days, as required by article 4746, Revised Statutes 1911, I further conclude that plaintiff is entitled to recover the 12 per cent. damages on the amount of said loss, as provided for in said statute, together with $150, as a reasonable attorney's fee for the prosecution of this suit for the collection of said loss, making a total recovery of $1,270, for which amount judgment is rendered herein in favor of plaintiff against the defendant."

The application for the policy contained the following stipulation:

"I, the undersigned, do hereby certify that I am the applicant for life insurance mentioned and described in the foregoing statements, representations, questions, and answers; that I have read and fully understand each and every of said statements, representations, questions, and answers; that said answers, statements, and representations, and each and all of them, as above written, are the answers, statements, and representations given and made by me, and were written by me or under my direction and in my presence. And I do further declare and agree that each and every of said answers, statements, and representations made by me as aforesaid is and are material to this application, and any action taken thereon by said the Guarantee Life Insurance Company, and I warrant and declare each and every of said answers, statements, and representations to be full, complete, and true, and that if either or any of said answers, statements, or representations be not full and complete, or if either or any of them be untrue in any respect, then and in such case any policy issued thereon shall be null and void from the beginning, except as shall be otherwise expressly provided in this policy."

The policy contained the following clause:

"This policy contains the entire contract between the parties, and all statements made by the insured shall, in the absence of fraud, be deemed representations and not warranties, and no such statements shall be used as a defense to a claim under this policy, unless it be contained in a written application, and a copy of such application shall be indorsed upon or attached to this policy when issued. This policy shall not take effect until the first premium is paid and the policy actually delivered during the life and good health of the insured."

Attached to and made a part of the policy was the application therefor which was dated July 23, 1912, and the only defense made to the suit was that the statements made by the insured in the application relative to his health were false and fraudulent, and material to the risk, and that the defendant was induced to issue the policy upon the belief that those statements were true.

The assignments of error presented here are to adverse findings by the court upon the defenses so made. Among others, the following questions and answers appear in the application:

"Q. Are you now and usually in good health, and do you believe yourself to be physically sound? A. Yes. Q. Have you ever been afflicted with any of the following named diseases or conditions (answer `Yes' or `No' to each): Diseases of the stomach? A. No. Cancer or tumor? A. No."

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Bluebook (online)
178 S.W. 643, 1915 Tex. App. LEXIS 788, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/guarantee-life-ins-co-v-evert-texapp-1915.