Wittnebert v. American Nat. Ins. Co.

139 S.W.2d 840, 1940 Tex. App. LEXIS 291
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 28, 1940
DocketNo. 3932
StatusPublished

This text of 139 S.W.2d 840 (Wittnebert v. American Nat. Ins. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wittnebert v. American Nat. Ins. Co., 139 S.W.2d 840, 1940 Tex. App. LEXIS 291 (Tex. Ct. App. 1940).

Opinion

WALTHALL, Justice.

This suit was brought by appellant, Lur-line Wittnebert, the surviving widow of Duke Wittnebert, against' the American National Insurance Company to recover lipón a policy of insurance issued by the appellee Insurance Company to her husband, and in which policy appellant was named the beneficiary.

The policy was of date November 27, 1925, and was in the sum of $2,500. Duke Wittnebert, the insured, died on October 4, 1936, within the first quarter of the policy year, which commenced on November 27, 1935, and ended on November 27, 1936. Appellant alleged that all premiums had been paid on said policy, including the first quarter of the policy year in which the insured died, the policy year being 1935.

The Insurance Company answered in the suit and alleged that at the time of the death of the insured on October 4, 1936, the policy was lapsed.

The case was tried by the court without a jury and resulted in a judgment in favor of the Insurance Company.

The plaintiff, appellant here, prosecutes this appeal.

The only question presented here is whether all premiums had been paid on the policy at the time of the death of the insured on October 4, 1936.

The facts are undisputed. The insured, Duke Wittnebert, paid the premiums on the policy from the time the policy was issued to him on November 27, 1925, and died within the policy year which commenced on November 27, 1935, and ended on November 27, 1936.

Within that policy year the insured paid the whole of the first quarter and a part of the second quarter of that policy year.

Prior thereto the insured had borrowed from the appellee Insurance Company the remainder of his cash benefits under the policy, for which he had executed his note, the' note to be deducted from the benefits.

The insured in his written application for the policy, which forms a part of the policy, requested the Insurance Company to pay the premiums as they became due and charge such payments as a loan against the policy.' The Company did so until March 15, 1936, on which date the Company submits that the policy, by its terms, lapsed, and was out of -benefit on October 4th of that year, the date of the death of the insured.

We copy here such parts of the policy as seem pertinent to the issues presented:

“The first premium hereunder, receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, is that shown at the head of .this page. This premium or this premium with others corresponding to the first year’s duration of this contract shall be for term insurance terminating -on the 27th- of November, 1926. Premiums subsequent to the first premium hereunder shall be payable and in the amounts as follows:
“Payable annually on the 27th day of November, $65.38
“Payable semi-annually on the 27th days of November and May * * * of each year, $34.10
“Payable quarter-annually on the 27th days of November, February * * *, [841]*841May * * * and August of each year, $17.43
“It being understood that one annual, or two semi-annual, or four quarter-annual premiums constitute all the payments required under this Policy for the period of one full year, and it being further understood that, until a change has been made in accordance with the provisions hereinafter set forth, the mode of payment and amount of premium shall be that set forth at the head of this Policy. The payment of premiums shall continue until the death of the Insured, any remaining premiums for the then current policy year being deducted in any settlement hereunder. The method of payment of premiums may be changed at any time after the first policy year upon application to the Home Office.
“Consideration
“The consideration for this policy is the application herefor, which is made a part of this contract and a copy of which application is attached hereto or endorsed herein, and the payment in advance of premiums for the periods, at the times, and in the amounts as provided above, the first year’s premium hereunder being for preliminary term insurance as there specified.
“Payments of Premiums
“All premiums under this policy are payable in advance either at the Home Office or to any Agent upon delivery of a receipt signed by the President, Vice-President, Secretary or Actuary of the Company.
“If any premium or obligation given for all or a part of any premium or other indebtedness is not paid on or before the date when due, the liability of, the Company hereunder shall cease, except as otherwise provided in this policy.
“A period of grace of one month in accordance with the Statutes of the State in which this Policy is delivered will be allowed for the payment of every premium hereunder after'the first, without any interest charge therefor, during which month the full insurance hereunder shall continue in force, if, however, the Insured shall die within said period of grace, all unpaid premium or premiums for the current policy year will be deducted in any settlement hereunder.
“Cash Loans
“After three full year’s premiums hereon have been duly paid, the Company at any time while this Policy is in full force will loan upon the proper assignment of said Policy, and upon the sole security thereof, at a rate of interest at six per centum per annum, a sum equal to, or at the option of the owner hereof, less than the reserve hereon at the end of the current Policy year, from which has been deducted an amount not greater than twenty-per cent of the reserve hereon or two and one-half per cent of the amount insured hereunder, whichever is less. The Company will deduct from such loan value any existing indebtedness hereon and any unpaid balance for the premium for the current policy year, and will collect interest in advance on the loan to the end of the current policy year. Said loan may be deferred for not exceeding ninety days after application therefor is made.
“Premium Loans
“If any premium hereon shall not be paid when due and if the Insured has so requested in said Insured’s Application herefor, the Company will, without further request on the part of Insured, charge the amount then due hereunder as a loan against the Policy, with interest in advance at a rate of six per cent per annum, if the loan value hereon after the payment of the premiums so charged be sufficient to secure all indebtedness hereunder with interest. If the premium is so charged, this Policy will be continued in force the same in all respects as though the premium paid by said loan had been specifically requested by the Insured at the time it was made. The same benefit will be applied from time to time as the premiums become due hereunder and are not paid, as long as the balance of the loan value hereon after the payments of the premium as charged is sufficient to pay for one day’s insurance on a pro rata basis.
“Notice of such loans will be mailed to the Insured when made, and said Insured may resume the payment of premiums hereon at any time without medical reexamination while the policy is so continued in force.
“Indebtedness

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Bluebook (online)
139 S.W.2d 840, 1940 Tex. App. LEXIS 291, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wittnebert-v-american-nat-ins-co-texapp-1940.