Patterson v. Capital Life & Health Ins. Co.
| Decision Date | 27 October 1955 |
| Docket Number | No. 17077,17077 |
| Citation | 228 S.C. 297,89 S.E.2d 723 |
| Court | South Carolina Supreme Court |
| Parties | Lillian PATTERSON, Appellant, v. CAPITAL LIFE & HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANY, Respondent. |
W. Harper Welborn, Anderson, for appellant.
Watkins, Vandiver & Freeman, Anderson, for respondent.
This is an action to recover both actual and punitive damages for alleged breach of an insurance contract. It is here on appeal by plaintiff from an order granting a motion by defendant to strike all allegations of the complaint appropriate to recovery of punitive damages, upon the ground that the facts stated do not warrant the recovery of such damages.
Plaintiff alleged that in March, 1952, defendant issued to her a policy of insurance wherein, in consideration of the payment of a weekly premium of 70cents, it agreed to pay her weekly sick benefits of $10 and at her death, to the beneficiary named, the sum of $150; that thereafter, in accordance with the established custom, an agent of defendant called at her home to collect the premiums, which were regularly paid through January 4, 1954; and 'that at the time the plaintiff was sick and disabled and had one or more pending claims for sick benefits' under the policy which the defendant refused to pay. It was then alleged (Paragraph 5): 'That by reason of the plaintiff's illness, she was unable to work and is still unable to work and is sick and has been under the care of a physician since November 1953; and that for this reason she was unable to pay further premiums on this aforesaid policy and was unwilling to do so by reason of the fact that the company had refused to pay her the sick benefits to which she was entitled; and that in consequence thereof the said policy contract was breached and lapsed for nonpayment of premiums; and that said breaching and lapsing of said contract was willfully, wantonly, and fraudulently designed by the agents and employees of the defendant company in order to avoid payment of any further sick benefits under said policy and to rid the defendant company of any further duties and obligations with this plaintiff.' (Italics ours.)
In the remaining allegations of the complaint, plaintiff charged that the foregoing acts 'were willful, wanton and fraudulent and were calculated to cheat and to defraud the plaintiff of her sick and hospital benefits and also her life insurance benefits as set forth in the said policies.'
We agree with the Court below that no facts are...
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...accompanied by a fraudulent act where plaintiffs failed to allege fraudulent intent or a fraudulent act. Patterson v. Capital Life & Health Ins. Co., 228 S.C. 297, 89 S.E.2d 723 (1955); Roberts v. Fore, 231 S.C. 311, 98 S.E.2d 766 (1957); Vann v. Nationwide Ins. Co., 257 S.C. 217, 185 S.E.2......
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...S.E. 864 (1936). Moreover, punitive damages are not recoverable for the mere refusal to pay a debt. Patterson v. Capital Life & Health Insurance Co., 228 S.C. 297, 89 S.E.2d 723 (1955). The trial court erred, therefore, in not directing a verdict in favor of St. Paul and USF & G on the issu......
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