Wilber Nat Bank of Oneonta v. United States
| Decision Date | 04 February 1935 |
| Docket Number | No. 210,210 |
| Citation | 294 U.S. 120,55 S.Ct. 362,79 L.Ed. 798 |
| Parties | WILBER NAT. BANK OF ONEONTA, N.Y., v. UNITED STATES |
| Court | U.S. Supreme Court |
Mr. William Wolff Smith, of Washington, D.C., for petitioner.
The Attorney General and Will G. Beardslee, of Washington, D.C.
July 1, 1927, James Patrick Mahar applied to the United States Veterans' Bureau for reinstatement of $5,000 insurance upon his life, and with the application sent check for $13.90. The allocation of this sum then suggested by him gives no indication that he thought it sufficient to meet any premium due after August 1st.
September 19th, a policy in the usual form issued and was delivered. It showed payment of the monthly premium—$3.95—due July 1st, and that like payment would be necessary on the first of each succeeding month. Also:
'* * * This policy takes effect on the first day of July, nineteen hundred and twenty-seven. * * *'
'Premiums are due and payable monthly in advance' and 'if any premium be not paid when due, this policy shall cease and become void * * *,' but that
A letter dated July 29th, acknowledging receipt of the check which accompanied the application, contained the following clause:
'Important.—Insurance under the application evidenced by the above remittance shall be effective subject to the World War Veterans' Act, 1924, and Regulations. * * *'
Neither this letter nor any other notice informed the assured how the $13.90 had been allocated, but under the statute and regulations it sufficed to pay prescribed charges, and two premiums on the $5,000 policy—July 1st and August 1st; also $2.65 for credit on the premium due September 1st Two remittances of $3.95 by or for the assured were made to the Bureau November 2d and December 20th, respectively. These were retained, but were not acknowledged until after the assured's death. After issuance of the policy, no notice was given the assured concerning payment of premiums, default, or that the policy had lapsed or was about to do so. Apparently the only communications sent prior to his death were the receipt of July 29th, and the policy, delivered September 19th.
Nothing indicates that the Bureau ordinarily sent notices concerning premiums or lapses. We are referred to no statute or regulation which required such a notice. No officer of the Bureau is shown to have had power to reinstate lapsed policies without evidence of insurability.
Mahar became totally incapacitated October 17th, but the Bureau had no notice of this fact. He died the 24th of December. Payment under the policy was refused upon the ground that it had lapsed because of failure to pay the premium due September 1st. The grace period ended October 2d.
Petitioner, as administrator of the estate, brought this action in the District Court, Northern District, New York (section 445, c. 10, tit. 38, USCA). It alleged issuance of the policy, that all matured premiums upon the policy had been duly paid, and asked recovery.
According to the provisions of the policy it expired October 2d. But petitioner claimed, and the District Court ruled, that because the Bureau failed to give notice concerning allocation of the sum forwarded July 1st, failed to give notice of the due dates of the premium or that the policy had or was about to lapse, and retained the two payments of $3.95 each, the United States were estopped to deny liability. It said:
'If the defendant was a private insurance company, I would have no hesitancy in declaring it estopped from claiming the policy had lapsed for non-payment of premium. * * * The same principle should be applied against the defendant in this case. 'When the...
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