Lloyds of London v. Lock, No. 1-982A268
| Docket Nº | No. 1-982A268 |
| Citation | 454 N.E.2d 81 |
| Case Date | September 20, 1983 |
| Court | Court of Appeals of Indiana |
Page 81
v.
Charles LOCK d/b/a Charles Lock Trucking, Plaintiff-Appellee.
First District.
Page 82
Jerry P. Belknap, James A. Strain, James E. Mahoney, Barnes & Thornburg, Indianapolis, Harvey M. Greene, Aurora, for defendants-appellants.
Bobby Jay Small, Indianapolis, William R. Wilson, Frank G. Kramer, Ewbank, Meyer, Kramer & Bush, Lawrenceburg, for plaintiff-appellee.
ROBERTSON, Presiding Judge.
Appellants-defendants, Lloyds of London and Michael George Miller (collectively "Underwriters"), appeal a jury verdict rendered in the Dearborn Circuit Court in favor of appellee-plaintiff, Charles Lock, d/b/a Charles Lock Trucking (Lock). The trial court awarded actual and punitive damages for an allegedly wrongful denial of liability under an insurance policy covering two trucks and two trailers which were allegedly stolen.
Affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded.
Lock has owned and operated a trucking business for about the last twelve to fourteen years. In December of 1979, he obtained an insurance policy through Midwest Insurance Agency (Midwest) underwritten by Underwriters covering certain trucks and trailers. The policy specified actual cash value for the equipment and contained a clause limiting liability to ($100,000).
On September 18th, Lock and his driver, Gerald Louden parked a 1979 Kenworth tractor with a Ravens trailer and a 1978 R-model Mack truck with a Trailmobile trailer at the South Dayton truck stop in Ohio. On September 22, 1980, Lock and Louden returned to pick up the trucks, but they were gone. Lock reported the loss to the police and to Underwriters.
On September 25, 1980, Underwriters sent Lock a letter and requested a thirty-day period before considering the claim. They also requested information about the vehicles. The letter stated that upon receipt of the information, they would give further consideration to the claim. They asked Lock to notify them if the vehicles were recovered.
In January of 1981, a Florida highway patrolman recovered the vehicles. Lock notified Underwriters about the recovery before going to Florida to retrieve the vehicles. The monthly payment on the stolen trucks was around $3,700.00. Lock stated that these two rigs were more than paying their own way and were responsible for keeping his business solvent. The trucks were still under full warranty when they were stolen and were not incurring any repair expenses.
Underwriters eventually denied the claim stating, "[I]t's not a clear cut theft. It might have been a mysterious disappearance, or it might have been arranged for." On March 19, 1981, Lock filed his complaint for damages against Underwriters. On May 12, 1982, the trial court entered judgment on a jury verdict in favor of Lock and against Underwriters for $635,000.00, with $445,000.00 in punitive damages and $190,000.00 of compensatory damages.
The first issue concerns the award for punitive damages....
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Kellogg v. City of Gary, No. 45S03-9011-CV-710
...of members in the class. The compensatory damage award cannot stand. The citizens' reliance on Lloyds of London v. Lock (1983), Ind.App., 454 N.E.2d 81, modified on reh'g, 455 N.E.2d 967, and Town of Rome City v. King (1983), Ind.App., 450 N.E.2d 72, for the proposition that all damages nee......
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Indiana & Michigan Elec. Co. v. Terre Haute Industries, Inc., No. 1-882A245
...476 N.E.2d 507; First National Bank of New Castle v. Acra (1984), Ind.App., 462 N.E.2d 1345; Lloyds of London v. Lock (1983), Ind.App., 454 N.E.2d 81; USF & G v. Peterson (1975), 91 Nev. 617, 540 P.2d 1070; Robert T. Donaldson, Inc. v. Aggregate Page 607 Surfacing Corp. (1975), 47 A.D.2......
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Orkin Exterminating Co., Inc. v. Traina, No. 4-782A193
...punitive damage awards for re-trial under Armstrong's clear and convincing evidence rule are Lloyd's of London v. Lock, (1983) Ind.App., 454 N.E.2d 81; Peoples Trust and Savings Bank v. Humphrey, (1983) Ind.App., 451 N.E.2d 1104; Grauman, supra; and Tuthill Corp., Fill-Rite Division v. Wolf......
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Burleson v. Illinois Farmers Ins. Co., No. IP88-318-C.
...were not disturbed on appeal. See Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. v. Dercach, 450 N.E.2d 537 (Ind. App.1983); Lloyds of London v. Lock, 454 N.E.2d 81 (Ind.App.1983); Transport Insurance Co. v. Terrell Trucking, 509 N.E.2d 220, 226 (Ind.App.1987); Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. v. Parkinson, ......
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Kellogg v. City of Gary, No. 45S03-9011-CV-710
...of members in the class. The compensatory damage award cannot stand. The citizens' reliance on Lloyds of London v. Lock (1983), Ind.App., 454 N.E.2d 81, modified on reh'g, 455 N.E.2d 967, and Town of Rome City v. King (1983), Ind.App., 450 N.E.2d 72, for the proposition that all damages nee......
-
Indiana & Michigan Elec. Co. v. Terre Haute Industries, Inc., No. 1-882A245
...476 N.E.2d 507; First National Bank of New Castle v. Acra (1984), Ind.App., 462 N.E.2d 1345; Lloyds of London v. Lock (1983), Ind.App., 454 N.E.2d 81; USF & G v. Peterson (1975), 91 Nev. 617, 540 P.2d 1070; Robert T. Donaldson, Inc. v. Aggregate Page 607 Surfacing Corp. (1975), 47 A.D.2d 85......
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Orkin Exterminating Co., Inc. v. Traina, No. 4-782A193
...punitive damage awards for re-trial under Armstrong's clear and convincing evidence rule are Lloyd's of London v. Lock, (1983) Ind.App., 454 N.E.2d 81; Peoples Trust and Savings Bank v. Humphrey, (1983) Ind.App., 451 N.E.2d 1104; Grauman, supra; and Tuthill Corp., Fill-Rite Division v. Wolf......
-
Burleson v. Illinois Farmers Ins. Co., No. IP88-318-C.
...were not disturbed on appeal. See Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. v. Dercach, 450 N.E.2d 537 (Ind. App.1983); Lloyds of London v. Lock, 454 N.E.2d 81 (Ind.App.1983); Transport Insurance Co. v. Terrell Trucking, 509 N.E.2d 220, 226 (Ind.App.1987); Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. v. Parkinson, ......