Jewett v. AMERICAN STANDARD INS. CO. OF WI.

178 P.3d 1235
CourtColorado Court of Appeals
DecidedOctober 18, 2007
Docket06CA1523
StatusPublished

This text of 178 P.3d 1235 (Jewett v. AMERICAN STANDARD INS. CO. OF WI.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Colorado Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jewett v. AMERICAN STANDARD INS. CO. OF WI., 178 P.3d 1235 (Colo. Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

178 P.3d 1235 (2007)

Spencer JEWETT, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
AMERICAN STANDARD INSURANCE COMPANY OF WISCONSIN, a Wisconsin corporation; and United Services Automobile Association, a Texas reciprocal interinsurance exchange, Defendants-Appellees.

No. 06CA1523.

Colorado Court of Appeals, Div. I.

October 18, 2007.

*1236 The Carey Law Firm, Robert B. Carey, Leif Garrison, Colorado Springs, CO, for Plaintiff-Appellant.

Harris, Karstaedt, Jamison & Powers, P.C., Robert W. Harris, A. Peter Gregory, Englewood, CO, for Defendant-Appellee American Standard Insurance Company of Wisconsin.

Kennedy Childs & Fogg, P.C., John R. Mann, Daniel R. McCune, Denver, CO, for Defendant-Appellee United Services Automobile Association.

Opinion by Judge DAILEY.

In this dispute over insurance coverage, plaintiff, Spencer Jewett, appeals from the summary judgment entered in favor of defendants, American Standard Insurance Company of Wisconsin (American Standard) and United Services Automobile Association (USAA). We affirm in part, vacate in part, and remand.

I. Background

The issues before us arise under the former Colorado Auto Accident Reparations Act (No-Fault Act), Ch. 94, sec. 1, §§ 13-25-1 to -23, 1973 Colo. Sess. Laws 334-45 (formerly codified as amended at §§ 10-4-701 to -726; repealed effective July 1, 2003, Ch. 189, sec. 1, § 10-4-726, 2002 Colo. Sess. Laws 649).

On April 30, 2002, Jewett, a pedestrian, was struck by a motor vehicle and suffered several debilitating upper-body injuries. At that time, the driver of the vehicle was covered by an automobile insurance policy issued by American Standard, while Jewett was the named insured under an automobile policy which he had initially purchased over the telephone from USAA.

American Standard paid Jewett the basic Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits required by law. Once those benefits were exhausted, however, Jewett requested — and *1237 was denied — additional benefits from American Standard and USAA.

Jewett thereafter filed suit against both insurers, seeking reformation of the insurance contracts and declaratory relief as to the parties' rights and liabilities under those contracts. He also sought monetary relief based on claims of breach of the reformed insurance contracts and bad faith (statutory and common law).

Jewett's claims focused on defendants' alleged failure to offer Additional Personal Injury Protection (APIP) as required by the No-Fault Act. More specifically, Jewett alleged in his complaint that both insurers failed (1) to explain the availability of APIP in writing prior to issuing their policies, in violation of section 10-4-706(4)(a); (2) to offer, at the time the policies were sold, APIP benefits for pedestrians injured by, or non-family occupants of, the covered vehicle, as required by section 10-4-710; and (3) to offer APIP coverage in a manner reasonably calculated to permit the named insured to make an informed decision about whether to purchase APIP coverage.

USAA thereafter filed a "partial" answer, in which it asserted various defenses, and moved for summary judgment. In its summary judgment motion, USAA essentially took the position that, even if there existed a question about the timing or adequacy of its initial explanation or offer of APIP benefits, it had subsequently and adequately provided Jewett with the opportunity to purchase APIP benefits on twelve separate occasions before his accident. USAA provided 200 pages of exhibits in support of its position.

Jewett responded to USAA's summary judgment motion, both on the merits and with a request, if necessary, to be permitted to conduct discovery to develop one or more genuine issues of material fact.

The trial court granted USAA's motion for summary judgment and dismissed Jewett's case against both USAA and American Standard with prejudice.

II. American Standard

On appeal, Jewett contends that the trial court erred in dismissing his claims against American Standard because (1) American Standard did not move for summary judgment and (2) the court provided no conclusions of law relating to the propriety of summary judgment in favor of American Standard.

American Standard acknowledges, and we agree, that the trial court erred in entering summary judgment in its favor. Consequently, we vacate that part of the trial court's order dismissing Jewett's case against American Standard and remand the matter to the trial court for further proceedings.

III. USAA

On appeal, Jewett contends that the trial court erred in granting USAA's motion for summary judgment. More specifically, he asserts that (1) genuine issues of material fact existed, precluding summary judgment, or, alternatively, (2) under C.R.C.P. 56(f), the trial court should have granted him a reasonable continuance to discover evidence which would have created one or more material issues of fact for the trier of fact to resolve. We are not persuaded.

Summary judgment is appropriate only if the pleadings, affidavits, depositions, or admissions in the record establish that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. C.R.C.P. 56; see also Nelson v. Gas Research Inst., 121 P.3d 340, 343 (Colo.App.2005).

We review de novo the trial court's summary judgment ruling. Aspen Wilderness Workshop, Inc. v. Colo. Water Conservation Bd., 901 P.2d 1251, 1256 (Colo.1995).

A.

Under the No-Fault Act, an insurer was required to provide basic PIP coverage for reasonable and necessary medical care, rehabilitative care, lost wages, and death benefits in the event of an accident without regard to fault. §§ 10-4-706(1)(b)-(c). The No-Fault Act also required an insurer to provide and offer an option for APIP coverage in exchange for higher premiums. See § 10-4-710(2)(a). An insurer's offer of optional *1238 APIP benefits was required to cover the same persons eligible to receive basic PIP benefits under sections 10-4-706 and 10-4-707, that is, named insureds, resident family members, guest occupants, and pedestrians. Brennan v. Farmers Alliance Mut. Ins. Co., 961 P.2d 550, 552 (Colo.App.1998).

"When an insurer fails to offer the insured optional coverage that it is statutorily required to offer, additional coverage in conformity with the required offer is incorporated into the agreement by operation of law." Thompson v. Budget Rent-A-Car Sys., Inc., 940 P.2d 987, 990 (Colo.App.1996); accord Brennan, 961 P.2d at 554.

"If the insurer fails to discharge its duty prior to the issuance of the policy, the duty continues and can be discharged only by an adequate notification and offer on some future occasion." Allstate Ins. Co. v. Parfrey, 830 P.2d 905, 912 (Colo.1992)(discussing offers of uninsured/underinsured benefits). In the context of APIP coverage, "[a]n insurer's statutory duty is to offer

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Bluebook (online)
178 P.3d 1235, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jewett-v-american-standard-ins-co-of-wi-coloctapp-2007.