King v. National General Insurance Co.

186 F. Supp. 3d 1062, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64349, 2016 WL 2851861
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. California
DecidedMay 16, 2016
DocketCase No. 15-cv-00313-DMR
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 186 F. Supp. 3d 1062 (King v. National General Insurance Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
King v. National General Insurance Co., 186 F. Supp. 3d 1062, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64349, 2016 WL 2851861 (N.D. Cal. 2016).

Opinion

ORDER ON MOTION TO DISMISS CORRECTED SECOND AMENDED COMPLAINT AND MOTION TO STRIKE

Donna M. Ryu, United States Magistrate Judge

- Qualified California drivers are entitled to purchase “Good Driver Discount” auto insurance policies. Plaintiffs Edd King, Diedre King, Elmo Sheen, and Sheila Lee allege that they are qualified “Good Drivers.” Plaintiffs allege that Defendants National General Insurance Company (“NGIC”), National' General Assurance Company (“NGAC”), Integon National Insurance Company (“Integon National”), Integon Preferred Insurance Company (“Integon Preferred”),' MIC General Insurance Corporation (“MIC”), Personal Express Insurance Company (“Personal Express”), and Sequoia Insurance Company [1064]*1064(“Sequoia”) share common ownership, management or control, and therefore belong to the same “control group.” Plaintiffs bring this putative class action alleging that Defendants failed to cross-offer to Plaintiffs and putative class members the lowest Good Driver rates available within Defendants’ control group, as required by California law.

Defendants previously moved to dismiss the complaint and to strike certain allegations. The court held that Plaintiffs had sufficiently alleged injury-in-fact for Article III standing, and that Plaintiffs’ claim did not involve challenges to rates approved by the Department of Insurance (“DOI”) or DOI’s ratemaking authority, and therefore did not fall within DOI’s exclusive jurisdiction. Now before the court are Defendants’ second motion to dismiss (“Mot.”) pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6), and second motion to strike (“MTS”) pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(f). [Docket Nos. 75, 76.]

The court held a hearing on the motions on February 11, 2016. At the hearing, Plaintiffs informed the court that there were factual errors in their Second Amended Complaint related to the Plaintiffs’ policies, premiums, and calculations of premium overcharges. Plaintiffs subsequently filed a Corrected Second Amended Complaint. (“CSAC” [Docket No. 90]). The parties agree that the corrections do not require re-briefing of Defendants’ motion to dismiss or motion to strike. [Docket No. 89.]

For the reasons stated below, the motion to dismiss is granted, and the motion to strike is denied without prejudice.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Good Driver Discount Rate

The information in this section is derived from the allegations in the CSAC unless otherwise noted. California requires insurers that provide private passenger automobile insurance (“PPA” policies) to offer a Good Driver discount to qualified drivers. CSAC at ¶ 1. See also Cal. Ins. Code § 1861.025 (defining persons qualified to purchase a “Good Driver Discount policy”); § 1861.02(b)(1) (“Every person who meets the criteria of Section 1861.025 shall be qualified to purchase a Good Driver Discount policy from the insurer of his or her choice.”); § 1861.02(b)(2) (“The rate charged for a Good Driver Discount policy shall comply with subdivision (a) and shall be at least 20% below the rate the insured would otherwise have been charged for the same coverage.”). Plaintiffs all held insurance policies issued by one or more of the Defendants. Plaintiffs allege that they, along with all members of the putative class, qualify as “Good Drivers” as defined by California statute. CSAC at ¶¶ 3, 4, 21.

B. Common Control Group and the Duty to Cross-Offer

According to Plaintiffs, the Defendant insurers are commonly owned or operated under common management, and therefore belong to a control group called the “Am-Trust Group.” Cal. Ins. Code § 1861.16(b); CSAC at ¶¶ 1, 16, 75. More specifically, Plaintiffs allege that from at least January 1, 2008, “Defendants’ applicable policy form filings, rate filings, rule filings and/or marketing representations with respect to the offering of the policies at issue and the Good Driver discounts were all drafted, developed, filed and/or approved for use by each Defendant insurer in the same or similar manner and by the same managers and personnel.” Id. at ¶ 17. Defendants hold themselves out as a single entity when marketing their insurance products, including offering a Good Driver Discount policy for California automobile policyholders. Id. at ¶ 18. There is actual or apparent agency among the Defendants with respect to the conduct, marketing of policies, mar[1065]*1065keting of Good Driver discounts and the resulting legal and contractual responsibilities of each of the Defendant-companies on behalf of the other named Defendant companies. Id. Plaintiffs assert that Defendants NGIC, NGAC, Integon National, In-tegon Preferred, and MIC have been members of AmTrust Group since prior to the commencement of the January 1, 2008 class period. Id. at ¶ 75. Plaintiffs further contend that Defendants Personal Express and Sequoia have been members of the AmTrust Group since April 2013. Id.

California law requires an agent or representative of any insurer within a control group to offer a qualified Good Driver the policy with the lowest rates for that coverage offered by any of the insurers within the control group. CSAC at -¶ 25. See also Cal. Ins. Code § 1861.16(b) (“An agent or representative representing one or more insurers having common ownership or operating in California under common management or control shall offer, and the insurer shall sell, a good driver discount policy to a good driver from an insurer within that common ownership, management, or control group, which offers the lowest rates for that coverage.”). The parties refer to this duty as the “cross-offer” requirement of section 1861.16(b).

The California Insurance Code provides certain exemptions from the cross-offer requirement. Cal. Ins. Code § Í861.16(c)(l). However, Plaintiffs allege that Defendants do not meet the criteria for any cross-offer exemption. CSAC at ¶ 27.

C. Defendants’ Allegedly Wrongful Behavior

Plaintiffs allege that “[a]cting together in concert and holding themselves out to be a single entity, [Defendants] have unlawfully failed to offer and sell Good Driver discounted private passenger automobile policies to Plaintiffs and other qualified California Good Drivers in the Class offering the lowest rates for that coverage,” and “failed to offer and sell the policies from their Control Group with the lowest Good Driver rates that were legally required under applicable law, and/or contained in Defendants’ Control Group regulatory filings.” CSAC at ¶¶ 1, 4, 28, 40.

Furthermore, Plaintiffs allege that Defendants did not inform overcharged policyholders of their right to be reimbursed for their premium overpayments, and did not make the required reimbursements when overcharges were discovered. Id. at ¶ 36.

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Bluebook (online)
186 F. Supp. 3d 1062, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64349, 2016 WL 2851861, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/king-v-national-general-insurance-co-cand-2016.