Gunny v. Allstate Ins. Co., 22318
| Decision Date | 13 May 1992 |
| Docket Number | No. 22318,22318 |
| Citation | 830 P.2d 1335,108 Nev. 344 |
| Parties | Robert Ralph GUNNY and Robert Gregory Gunny, Appellants, v. ALLSTATE INSURANCE COMPANY, Respondent. |
| Court | Nevada Supreme Court |
Robert Gregory Gunny (Greg) was seriously injured in a water-skiing accident by the propeller of a boat that belonged to his father, Robert Ralph Gunny (Ralph). Greg filed a claim against Ralph's insurance company, Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate), requesting compensation for his injuries. Because Allstate delayed compensating Greg, he filed another complaint against Allstate in which he alleged bad faith. The district court granted Allstate's motion for summary judgment, finding that a contractual relationship must exist to support a bad faith claim. On appeal, Greg asserts that: (1) as a third-party claimant, he has standing to sue the insurance company, (2) NRS 686A.310 creates a statutory cause of action for a third-party claimant suing on a bad faith claim, and (3) the insurance policy itself creates a separate cause of action for a third-party claimant.
We conclude that Greg lacks standing to sue because he had no contractual relationship with Allstate. See United Fire Insurance Co. v. McClelland, 105 Nev. 504, 780 P.2d 193 (1989) (); State v. District Court, 69 Nev. 196, 245 P.2d 999 (1952) (). Greg presented no evidence that he had substantially relied on the insurance company's representations or that he was a specific intended beneficiary of the insurance policy. While we may recognize a beneficiary's cause of action if he or she has relied on actions or representations of the insurance company to his or her detriment (see contra Santacruz v. United Pacific Ins. Co., 650 F.Supp. 32 (D.Nev.1986)), we need not address that question since no such evidence was presented.
Secondly, we conclude that Greg has no private right of action as a third-party claimant under NRS 686A.310. See Crystal Bay General Imp. Dist. v. Aetna...
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