Grissom v. Liberty Mutual Fire Ins. Co., No. 11-60260 (5th Cir. 2012)
Annotate this CaseFollowing the destruction of his home in Hurricane Katrina, plaintiff sued Liberty Mutual for negligent misrepresentation to recover the difference between his flood insurance coverage he had and the coverage he could have purchased under the preferred riskier insurance policy. The district court concluded that plaintiff's claim was not preempted by federal law and sent the case to the jury which awarded plaintiff in compensatory damages. Because plaintiff's dispute with Liberty Mutual related to his renewal of a policy already in place, Campo v. Allstate Ins. Co. did not control and the court held that plaintiff's state law claim was preempted. Because the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was presumed to be paying both the litigation expenses and any resulting damage award, the district court erred in submitting this case to the jury. Because Liberty Mutual was not offering insurance advice, was not a fiduciary of plaintiff, and did not offer any statement to plaintiff to imply the lack of alternative insurance options, Mississippi law would not recognize negligent misrepresentation as a cause of action against Liberty Mutual and the submission of negligent misrepresentation to the jury was error. Accordingly, the court reversed with instructions to dismiss plaintiff's claim
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on April 30, 2012.
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