Motors Insurance v. United States Fire Insurance

160 S.E.2d 754, 208 Va. 684, 1968 Va. LEXIS 167
CourtSupreme Court of Virginia
DecidedApril 22, 1968
DocketRecord No. 6565
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 160 S.E.2d 754 (Motors Insurance v. United States Fire Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Virginia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Motors Insurance v. United States Fire Insurance, 160 S.E.2d 754, 208 Va. 684, 1968 Va. LEXIS 167 (Va. 1968).

Opinion

Eggleston, C.J.,

delivered the opinion of the court.

Motors Insurance Corporation filed in the court below a motion for declaratory judgment against United States Fire Insurance Company, Robert B. Gayle, administrator of the estate of Marion Water-house, deceased, and Armistead E. Meacham. It alleged that on September 9, 1962, a 1962 Chevrolet automobile owned by Meacham and driven by Waterhouse ran off the road and was damaged to such [685]*685an extent that it was a total loss; that at the time of the accident there was in full force and effect a policy of insurance issued by United States Fire Insurance to Waterhouse, under which that company agreed to pay for loss caused by collision to any vehicle driven by the insured, Waterhouse, whether owned by him or by another.

It was also alleged that at that time Motors Insurance had in full force and effect a policy of insurance issued to General Motors Acceptance Corporation, as a lienholder on the 1962 Chevrolet automobile, under the terms of which iMotors Insurance agreed to pay, among other things, for loss by collision to the lienholder’s interest therein, but only after the owner of the automobile (Meacham) had defaulted in the payments due the lienholder under a conditional sales contract dated August 6, 1962, and lienholder had repossessed the automobile; and that subsequent to September 9, 1962 Meacham had defaulted in the payments on the conditional sales contract and General Motors Acceptance had repossessed the automobile on November 14, 1962.

It was further alleged that as a result of the accident the automobile had been badly damaged; that pursuant to its policy, Motors Insurance had paid General Motors Acceptance the sum of $1,508.23, the difference between the amount of its lien on and the salvage value of the car; that United States Fire Insurance was obligated, under the provisions of its policy issued to Waterhouse, to pay such sum to General Motors Acceptance; that Motors Insurance was the assignee of and subrogated to the right of General Motors Acceptance and was entitled to collect such sum from United States Fire Insurance, but that the latter had refused to make such payment.

It was also alleged that Waterhouse died on September 9, 1962 as the result of the accident and that Gayle had qualified as administrator of his estate. The prayer of the motion was that the court declare that Motors Insurance was entitled to a judgment against United States Fire Insurance in the sum of $1,508.23, and that it enter judgment therefor.

United States Fire Insurance demurred to the motion on the ground that it failed to state any case against it for either declaratory or other relief. The defendants Gayle, administrator, and Meacham filed separate demurrers alleging that the motion failed to state any case against either of them. The lower court entered an order sustaining the demurrers. Since, it said, the motion sought no relief against either Gayle or Meacham it should be dismissed as to them. The order directed that Motors Insurance file an amended motion, attach[686]*686ing thereto copies of the two insurance policies, and alleging whether it would proceed by way of motion for declaratory judgment or by an “ordinary motion for judgment for damages.”

Motors Insurance filed an amended motion for declaratory judgment, naming only United States Fire Insurance Company as defendant. The amended motion repeated the allegations of the original motion as to the accident, the issuance of the two policies, and the repossession of the automobile by General Motors Acceptance because of the default in the deferred payments. It alleged that under the terms of the policy issued by United States Fire Insurance to Waterhouse that company had agreed to pay “for loss caused by collision to the owned automobile or to a non-owned automobile” while being driven by Waterhouse. It was also alleged that General Motors Acceptance was a third party beneficiary of United States Fire Insurance Company’s policy and that since Motors Insurance had paid General Motors Acceptance the sum of $1,508.23, and General Motors Acceptance had assigned its right to Motors Insurance, the latter was entitled to recover that amount of United States Fire Insurance.

United States Fire Insurance filed a demurrer to the amended motion asserting that it failed to state any facts, “as opposed to conclusions,” showing any legal right of Motors Insurance or of General Motors Acceptance, through which Motors Insurance claimed, to recover any sum from it, United States Fire Insurance, or establishing that Motors Insurance is, in fact, a third party beneficiary of the insurance contract issued by United States Fire Insurance to Waterhouse.

The lower court entered a final order sustaining the demurrer and dismissing the amended motion for judgment on the ground that, “as a matter of law,” Motors Insurance had no standing to recover on the contract of insurance issued by United States Fire Insurance to Waterhouse, because Motors Insurance was not in privity with Waterhouse or a third party beneficiary to the contract of insurance issued to him or was “otherwise entitled to sue thereon.” From this order Motors Insurance has appealed claiming that such holding is contrary to the law and the evidence. Gayle, administrator of the estate of Waterhouse, and Meacham have been dismissed as parties and are not concerned in this appeal.

The gist of the claim of Motors Insurance against United States Fire Insurance is that the policy issued by the latter was for the benefit of General Motors Acceptance, the holder of the lien on the Meacham [687]*687car, as well as for the benefit of Waterhouse the named insured, the driver of the car, and Meacham its owner; that since it, Motors Insurance, has paid and satisfied the claim of General Motors Acceptance it is entitled by subrogation to reimbursement from United States Fire Insurance. In short, Motors Insurance says, it has paid a claim for which United States Fire Insurance was primarily liable and to whom it may now look for reimbursement.

[1] The allegation that the policy of United States Fire Insurance was for the benefit of General Motors Acceptance is an allegation of a conclusion of law, the correctness of which is not admitted by the demurrer.

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Bluebook (online)
160 S.E.2d 754, 208 Va. 684, 1968 Va. LEXIS 167, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/motors-insurance-v-united-states-fire-insurance-va-1968.