Boyer v. Wells

Boyer v. Wells

The Backstory

Judgement

Jones v. Grewe

"Ordinarily, an insurance agent assumes only those duties normally found in any agency relationship. This includes the obligation to use reasonable care, diligence, and judgment in procuring the insurance requested by an insured. The mere existence of such a relationship imposes no duty on the agent to advise the insured on specific insurance matters.
An agent may point out to [the insured] the advantages of additional coverage and may ferret out additional facts from the insured applicable to such coverage, but he is under no obligation to do so; nor is the insured under an obligation to respond."

"[A]t least 45 days prior to policy expiration, an insurer shall deliver to the named insured or mail to the named insured at the address shown in the policy, either of the following:
1) An offer of renewal of the policy contingent upon payment of premium as stated in the offer..." Upon an insured's nonpayment of premium, however, the insurer may mail a notice of cancellation of the policy no less than 10 days prior to the effective date of the cancellation. (Ins. Code, ?? 676, 677.2, subd. [c].) Any notice of cancellation must be mailed to the named insured at the address shown in the policy. (Ins. Code, ? 677, subd. [a].)"

Kotlar v. Hartford Fire Ins. Co.

Browne v. Turner Construction Co. Fitzpatrick v. Hayes

"[A]ssuming any duty was owed plaintiff, plaintiff cannot establish he has or will sustain any damages as a result of the limits which were procured for the policy. Plaintiff estimated the repair cost for the property was $337,365.22, while the amount of available coverage was $352,000. Plaintiff did not present an estimate or any specific evidence demonstrating the cost of repair would be greater than those amounts."

Barry Zalma, Esq., CFE, is a California attorney specializing in expert witness testimony and consulting with plaintiffs and defendants on insurance coverage and claims handling. He founded Zalma Insurance Consultants in 2001 and serves as its senior consultant. Zalma also publishes the free Zalma's Insurance Fraud Letter every two weeks at www.zalma.com . He can be reached at zalma@zalma.com .

Special Reports /

Down to Cases: Agents Only Owe Duties Actually Assumed

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