Arnold v. Iowa State Ins. Co.

• Decision Date: 05 January 1932
• Docket Number: No. 21762.,21762.
• Citation: Arnold v. Iowa State Ins. Co., 44 S.W.2d 865 (Mo. App. 1932)
• Parties: ARNOLD v. IOWA STATE INS. CO.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

44 S.W.2d 865

ARNOLD v. IOWA STATE INS. CO.

No. 21762.

St. Louis Court of Appeals. Missouri.

January 5, 1932.

Appeal from Circuit Court, Monroe County; Chas. T. Hays, Judge.

"Not to be officially published."

Action by Mose Arnold against the Iowa State Insurance Company. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals.

Affirmed.

Lane B. Henderson, of Shelbina, and Oliver W. Nolen, of Paris, for appellant.

Fred C. Bollow and Harry J. Libby, both of Shelbina, and James H. Whitecotton, of Paris, for respondent.

BECKER, J.

This is a suit on a policy of fire insurance. Trial was had to a jury, and verdict resulted for plaintiff, and from the resulting judgment defendant appeals.

Defendant issued its policy of insurance whereby it insured plaintiff against loss by fire on a four-room frame dwelling house. At the time in question the policy of insurance covered $1,000 on the house and $500 on the contents. During the life of the policy, on March 28, 1926, a fire occurred in the building. There is dispute as to how extensive the fire was, plaintiff contending that the damage was in excess of $150, while defendant sought to show by plaintiff's letters to it that the damage amounted to but $1.50.

After this fire plaintiff moved his family, and a small amount of the household goods necessary for their use, from the burned dwelling over to a smaller dwelling located on land belonging to plaintiff adjoining. Plaintiff testified that he wrote the agent of the defendant company notifying him of the fire and that he was compelled to move from the dwelling because the same was untenantable; that in his letter he had estimated the loss at $150. This letter was not produced in evidence, though the receipt of a letter is admitted by defendant.

Plaintiff is an illiterate negro, and two letters that he wrote to the defendant, which were introduced in evidence, bear witness to that fact. One of these letters discloses that if plaintiff intended to state his loss at $150 he unfortunately placed the decimal point at the wrong place so as to show the loss at $1.50. This loss, however, was never adjusted by defendant.

Plaintiff continued to live in the house to which he and his family had moved awaiting adjustment of the loss so that repairs could be made thereon, and the property made tenantable again, and, as stated heretofore, left the larger portion of his household goods in the house which had been burned. On May 10, 1926, a second fire occurred which totally destroyed the dwelling house and its contents. Plaintiff promptly notified defendant's agent of the second fire and requested adjustment.

Thereupon W. S. Manning, agent for the defendant in that locality, together with an adjuster by the name of Mitchell, went to plaintiff's home, and in conversation with him denied liability for destruction of the dwelling on two grounds: First, that he had executed a deed of trust upon the premises after the issuance of the policy without notice to the defendant; and, second, that the dwelling had been unoccupied for more than ten days without notice to the defendant or without its permission.

Thereafter on June 8, 1926, Manning again called on plaintiff, accompanied by one Bush, an adjuster for the defendant company. According to plaintiff, at this meeting, he had a conference with these men on a public road some 100 yards distant from his home; that he there accepted a draft for $270 in compromise for his claim under the policy for the destruction by fire of the contents of the...