Home Insurance v. Strange

123 N.E. 127, 70 Ind. App. 49, 1919 Ind. App. LEXIS 7
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 24, 1919
DocketNo. 9,794
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 123 N.E. 127 (Home Insurance v. Strange) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Home Insurance v. Strange, 123 N.E. 127, 70 Ind. App. 49, 1919 Ind. App. LEXIS 7 (Ind. Ct. App. 1919).

Opinion

Nichols, J.

This action was commenced in tbe Superior Court of Grant county, May 14,1916, by tbe [51]*51appellee against the appellant on a fire insurance policy, for damages for the loss of a building by fire, such building being a portion of the property covered by said policy. The policy contains the following provision :

“If the premises described shall be occupied for other than farm purposes or if any of the buildings described are now vacant, unoccupied or uninhabited, or shall become vacant, unoccupied or uninhabited, and so remain for a period exceeding ten days, without written consent hereon, then * * * this policy shall be null and void. * f * This company reserves the right to cancel this policy or any part thereof, by tendering to the assured the unearned prorate premium, after due notice to that effect, etc. * * * The Secretary or Assistant Secretary of the Western Farm Department, at Chicago, 111., alone shall have authority to waive or alter any of the terms or conditions of this policy.”

The amended complaint contains the following averment: “That at the time said building No. 3 was insured, the same was being used as a dwelling house; that said building continued to be used by this plaintiff as a dwelling house until the 27th day of February, 1913; that upon said last named date, this plaintiff informed the firm of Cushwa & Presnail, who were the duly acting and authorized agents of said defendant company at that time, that from and after the said 27th day of February, 1913, he would cease to use said building as a dwelling, but would use said building for storage purposes only; that the defendant company well knowing the purposes and inten[52]*52tions of this plaintiff, failed and neglected to cancel said policy, to return or offer to return to said plaintiff the unearned premiums on said building, or any part thereof, and failed and neglected to notify said plaintiff that the insurance on the said building, would not continue to be in force, or to inform him in any manner or form, that said building was not fully protected by said policy; that no notice was ever given to the plaintiff that said policy was held to be null and void, or that said protection bad been withdrawn by said defendant company, until after the said building had been consumed by fire on the 17th day of 'May, 1911; and that plaintiff avers and charges that by reason of said company failing and neglecting to so notify said plaintiff or to tender back to him the unearned premiums, or to cancel his policy, that said defendant company waived the provisions of the policy relating thereto. ’ ’

The amended complaint was answered in two paragraphs, the first being a general denial, and the second averring in substance. that: Plaintiff had not performed all of the conditions of said policy in that after said policy was executed and delivered, said building became vacant and that the plaintiff, by due request and application therefor, received two separate, distinct vacancy permits, the last of which expired December 9th, 1912, prior to thé allóged fire, and that no other permit had been applied for and that the building was vacant at the time of the fire; that as soon as the defendant learned of the vacancy of the said building, which was after said fire, it promptly offered plaintiff to return to him the entire amount of premium paid by him covering said building, but the plaintiff refused to accept the same.

[53]*53The appellee filed a reply to the second paragraph of answer, and the cause, being at issue, was submitted to the jury for trial, and a verdict for $1,200 was returned for appellee. The court, after overruling appellant’s motion for a new trial, rendered judgment on the verdict in favor of the appellee and against appellant, from which judgment this appeal is prosecuted.

The overruling of appellant’s motion for a new trial is the only error assigned.

It appears by the evidence in this case that Gushwa and Presnail were the agents of the appellant insurance company, at Marion, Indiana, and had in their employ Miss Sue Wallace, who testified that she was employed as “general office girl, bookkeeper and policy clerk and general office work.” She had been so employed with such agents for about eleven years. It does not appear by the evidence that these agents were the agents of any other companies than the appellant. The appellee was the holder of a policy issued to him by the appellant through the office of their said agents Cushwa and Presnall, which policy covered the period from June 7, 1910, to June 7, 1915, the amount of the insurance being $10,000, and the consideration therefor being $200, in installments as follows, to wit: $50, cash; $50, July 1,1912; $50, July 1, 1913; $50, July 1, 1914. And all the installments due had been paid at the time of the fire loss, which is the occasion of this action. This insurance was upon three dwelling houses, upon other buildings such as barns, sheds, granaries, cribs and other outbuildings, and upon personal property located in such buildings as appears by the policy, and it does -not- appear that there was any difference in the rate of insurance upon the buildings whether [54]*54the same were used as dwellings, or barns, or for storage purposes. On February 27, 1913, appellee went to the office of the agents of the appellant and found Miss Wallace to be the only person in the office at that time; he made inquiry for either Mr. Cushwa or Mr. Presnail, and was informed by Miss Wallace that neither of the gentlemen were in the office, but that she was looking for them to return soon, and she invited him to wait. He did wait until he was compelled to leave before their return, and when-leaving he informed her that he had come in to notify the appellant company that he would not use building No. 3, known in the policy as the hotel building, as a dwelling any longer, and that it would be used for storage. She then informed him that she could take note of anything that he had, and it would be as good as if Mr. Cushwa were in, as she could notify him when he came in. She took a piece of paper and made a note of the matter and placed it on her desk. Before that time appellee had been granted two vacancy permits for this building, both of which had expired. After this date the building was used as storage for automobiles, tools, clover seed, etc., and Dr. Mattson had stored some things in the building. The building was destroyed by fire May 17, 1914. It will be observed that after the conversation of February 27, 1913, between the appellee and Miss Wallace, and before the date of the destruction of the building by fire, the appellee paid another $50 installment of the" premiums.

1. Appellant contends that it was error to admit in evidence, over the objection and exception of the appellant, the conversation between Miss Wallace and the appellee, James B. Strange, for the purpose of proving knowledge or notice to the [55]*55appellant and waiver of the vacancy provision in the policy and the written consent by appellant, and contends that the position that Miss Wallace had with the firm was not such evidence of authority as would bind the appellant upon any matter affecting the policy in suit. It is not disputed that the firm of Cushwa and Presnall were the duly appointed agents of the appellant, and that they were fully recognized as such. Generally, agents of insurance companies authorized to contract for risks, receive and collect-premiums, and deliver policies, may confer upon a clerk, or subordinate, authority to execute the same powers.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
123 N.E. 127, 70 Ind. App. 49, 1919 Ind. App. LEXIS 7, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/home-insurance-v-strange-indctapp-1919.