Life Insurance Co. of Virginia v. Williams

172 S.E. 101, 48 Ga. App. 10, 1933 Ga. App. LEXIS 443
CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
DecidedOctober 21, 1933
Docket23037
StatusPublished
Cited by37 cases

This text of 172 S.E. 101 (Life Insurance Co. of Virginia v. Williams) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Life Insurance Co. of Virginia v. Williams, 172 S.E. 101, 48 Ga. App. 10, 1933 Ga. App. LEXIS 443 (Ga. Ct. App. 1933).

Opinion

Sutton, J.

On April 16, 1929, the Life Insurance Company of Virginia, a foreign corporation, issued a policy on the life of James D. Williams, with his mother, Frances Williams, as the beneficiary. Williams paid the premium for the first year. The policy contained this provision: “A grace of one month (not less than 30 days) without interest, during which time the policy will remain in full force, will be allowed in the .payment of any premium, except the first.” Attached to the policy was a rider wherein the insurance company, in consideration of a'small additional annual premium, which was paid by the insured, agreed that “Upon receipt of proof satisfactory to the company at its home office that while the said policy was in full force and effect, before default in the payment of the premiums and before the anniversary of said policy on which the age of the insured at nearest birthday is sixty years, the insured has become totally disabled as defined below, and will be continuously so totally disabled for life, or if the proof submitted is not conclusive as to the permanency of such disability but establishes that the insured is, and for a period of not less than three consecutive months immediately preceding receipt of proof [12]*12has been, totally disabled as defined below, the company will waive the payment of any premium falling due under said policy during such disability, subject to the following conditions: Such waiver of premium shall become effective with the first premium falling due under said policy after the date of the commencement of such disability, provided, however, that in no case shall waiver begin as of a date more than six months prior to the date of receipt of the required proof.” April 16, 1930, was the date when the next annual premium was payable, but, as seen above, this was extended until May 16, 1930, by reason of the period of grace provided for in the policy. On May 10, 1930, the insured became totally disabled. Torrance, the general agent of the insurer for the State of Georgia, was informed of this fact by Skelton, a brother-in-law of the insured, on said May 10, when Torrance stated to Skelton that the insured would have to be disabled for three months to receive the benefits of the disability clause. On August 2, 1930, Skelton carried to this general agent of the insurer a notice of the insured’s disability and asked for proper blanks, in order to- file proof of disability, and the agent refused to give him the blanks, stating that the policy had been lapsed by the insurer on May 16, 1930, for nonpayment of the premium on or before that date. On November 8, 1930, the insured died, having been totally disabled from May 10, 1930, to the date of his death. On November 15, 1930, a written notice, accompanied by a doctor’s certificate, was delivered to the general agent of the insurer, informing him of the death of the insured and of his total disability from May 10, 1930, and of the fact that the beneficiary held the policy and wished to have furnished to her proper papers to be executed for proof of death and disability. This written notice and the doctor’s certificate were forwarded by this agent to the home office of the insurer in Richmond, Virginia. .On November 20, 1930, this agent, Torrance, wrote to Skelton that he was in receipt of a letter from the home office in reference to the claim under said policy, in which it stated that all rights under the policy had been forfeited, and that the contract of insurance provided that in order to make claim for disability, the claim must be made while the policy is in force and before default of premium, and, as no claim was made for disability until after the policy lapsed and after Mr. Williams’ death, it could not recognize any claim under the policy. It appeared that [13]*13Skelton was acting for the insured in calling on Torrance and delivering the notice to him and asking for blanks to make proof of disability. The company having refused to pay the claim, the beneficiary sued out an attachment against it. The insurance company denied liability, on the ground that the policy was not in force at the time of the death of the insured and that no proof of disability had been furnished it while the policy was in force or at any other time. On the trial the above-stated facts appeared. The jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff for the face amount of the policy, with interest. The defendant moved for a new trial. The motion was overruled, and the defendant excepted.

Counsel for the insurance company states that a verdict for the plaintiff was contrary to law and to the evidence, and that the real issues in the case may be narrowed down to two questions, which it contends should be answered in the negative. The first one is, “’Can the plaintiff in this case recover on the policy when the uncontradicted evidence shows that the premium due April 16, 1930, was never paid, even though there was a provision for thirty days of grace within which to pay it ?”

The appellate courts of this State have adopted certain rules with reference to the construction of policies of insurance. If such a policy is capable of two constructions, that interpretation must be placed upon it which is most favorable to the insured. Massachusetts Benefit Life Asso. v. Robinson, 104 Ga. 256 (30 S. E. 918, 42 L. R. A. 261); Kesler v. Commercial Casualty Insurance Co., 39 Ga. App. 197, 201 (146 S. E. 506). Policies of insurance must be liberally construed in favor of the object to be accomplished, and provisions therein will be strictly construed against the insurer, as they are issued upon printed forms prepared by experts at the instance of the insurer, in the preparation of which the insured, has no voice. Johnson v. Mutual Life Ins. Co., 154 Ga. 653 (115 S. E. 14); Mandeville Mills v. Milam, 39 Ga. App. 768, 771 (148 S. E. 418). Furthermore, in construing contracts of insurance, forfeitures are not favored. Ætna Ins. Co. v. Lipsitz, 130 Ga. 170, 175 (60 S. E. 531, 14 Ann. Cas. 1070).

With these legal sign-posts for our guidance, what is the proper construction to be given this provision in the policy in this case: “Upon proof satisfactory to the company . . that while the said policy was in force and effect, before default in the payment [14]*14of premiums, . . the insured has become totally disabled . . and for a period of not less than three consecutive months immediately preceding receipt of proof has been totally disabled, the company will waive the payment of any premium falling due under said policy during such disability. . .

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Horace Mann Life Insurance v. Lunsford
324 S.E.2d 808 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1984)
Cotton States Mutual Insurance Company v. Torrance
137 S.E.2d 551 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1964)
Loftin v. United States Fire Insurance
127 S.E.2d 53 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1962)
New York Underwriters Insurance v. Noles
115 S.E.2d 474 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1960)
Hanover Fire Insurance Co. v. Scroggs
83 S.E.2d 295 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1954)
Moore v. Pilot Life Insurance Co.
32 S.E.2d 757 (Supreme Court of South Carolina, 1945)
Nalley v. New York Life Ins. Co.
138 F.2d 318 (Fifth Circuit, 1943)
Nalley v. New York Life Ins.
48 F. Supp. 470 (N.D. Georgia, 1943)
Turpentine & Rosin Factors, Inc. v. Travelers Ins.
45 F. Supp. 310 (S.D. Georgia, 1942)
Boston Insurance Co. v. Harmon
18 S.E.2d 84 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1941)
Rein v. New York Life Insurance Co.
299 N.W. 385 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1941)
Gibraltar Fire & Marine Insurance v. Lanier
13 S.E.2d 27 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1941)
Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance v. Montague
10 S.E.2d 279 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1940)
Hulme v. Mutual Benefit Health & Accident Ass'n
2 S.E.2d 750 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1939)
McLendon v. Jefferson Standard Life Insurance
1 S.E.2d 75 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1939)
Industrial Life & Health Insurance v. Winn
200 S.E. 452 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1938)
Viles v. Prudential Ins.
96 F.2d 3 (Tenth Circuit, 1938)
Bowen v. State Mutual Insurance
193 S.E. 113 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1937)
Equitable Life Assurance Society v. Adams
192 S.E. 90 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1937)
Prudential Insurance Co. of America v. Calloway
189 S.E. 545 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1936)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
172 S.E. 101, 48 Ga. App. 10, 1933 Ga. App. LEXIS 443, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/life-insurance-co-of-virginia-v-williams-gactapp-1933.