Thomas v. Ameritas Life Insurance, No. 21-30254 (5th Cir. 2022)
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Plaintiff and his son’s mother met with the insurance company’s producer seeking insurance covering the life of their adult son. The producer filled out the application, as well as a temporary insurance agreement (the “TIA”) to cover the son’s life while the application was pending. After completing the application and the TIA, the producer gave Plaintiff the opportunity to review. The producer subsequently submitted the application and authorized the TIA. After receiving notice of the death, Defendant sent Plaintiff a letter notifying him that the application had not been processed. Defendant subsequently denied coverage. Its basis for doing so was the misrepresentation and omission of key parts of the son’s medical history. Plaintiff then filed suit in state court against the producer and insurance company. The district court determined that Defendant denied coverage without just cause.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court’s ruling holding that the life insurance company was bound by its producer’s errors and omissions. The court reasoned that the district court acted within its discretion to deny Defendant’s pretrial motion in limine. Further, Defendant forfeited its argument related to the contractual element of “cause,” by not first presenting it to the district court. As for the insured’s “consent” to the contracts, the producer’s actions, errors and omissions in completing the insurance application and TIA were properly imputed to Defendant such that Defendant was estopped from raising the son’s lack of consent. Finally, the district court acted within its discretion in assessing penalty interest against Defendant.
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