Williams v. Philadelphia Life Ins. Co.

• Decision Date: 10 August 1916
• Docket Number: 9490.
• Citation: 89 S.E. 675,105 S.C. 305
• Parties: WILLIAMS v. PHILADELPHIA LIFE INS. CO. ET AL.
• Court: South Carolina Supreme Court

89 S.E. 675

105 S.C. 305

WILLIAMS v. PHILADELPHIA LIFE INS. CO. ET AL.

No. 9490.

Supreme Court of South Carolina

August 10, 1916

Appeal from Common Pleas Circuit Court of Lancaster County; I. W Bowman, Judge.

Action by H. T. Williams, administrator of the estate of Margaret E Williams, against the Philadelphia Life Insurance Company and others. From an order sustaining demurrer to the complaint plaintiff appeals. Reversed.

Complaint referred to, and in the opinion held to state a cause of action, is as follows:

I. That Margaret E. Williams who was the wife of plaintiff H. T Williams, died intestate on the ____ day of April, 1911, and that the plaintiff was thereafter, by the probate court for York county, appointed as administrator of the estate of said Margaret E. Williams, and that plaintiff has duly qualified and is now acting as such administrator.

II. That the defendant Philadelphia Life Insurance Company is a foreign corporation, chartered and organized as a life insurance company under the laws of Pennsylvania, with its home office at Philadelphia, and at the time hereafter mentioned was, and now is, engaged in the business of life insurance in the state of South Carolina.

III. That the defendant Gordon Insurance & Investment Company is a foreign corporation, chartered and organized under the laws of North Carolina as a life insurance company, with its main office at Monroe, N. C., and at the times hereinafter mentioned was, and now is, engaged in the business of soliciting and delivering contracts of life insurance in the state of South Carolina, as agents for the defendant Philadelphia Life Insurance Company.

IV. That on the 22d day of December, 1910, the said Margaret E Williams, on the solicitation of defendant Gordon Insurance & Investment Company as agents for the defendant Philadelphia Life Insurance Company, filed with said Philadelphia Life Insurance Company an application for insurance on her life for the benefit of her estate, for the sum of $10,000, having made arrangement with the defendants for the payment of the premium therefor satisfactory to them.

V. That plaintiff is informed and believes that some time in January, 1911, the defendant Philadelphia Life Insurance Company issued a contract of insurance on the life of said Margaret E. Williams for the sum of $10,000 payable at her death to her estate, and forwarded the same to its said agent, Gordon Insurance & Investment Company, for delivery to the said Margaret E. Williams.

VI. That it was the duty of the said Philadelphia Life Insurance Co., to said Margaret E. Williams to pass upon her application for insurance, and give her notice of its action thereon within a reasonable time, that it was also the duty of the said Philadelphia Life Insurance Co., within a reasonable time, to notify said Margaret E. Williams of the issuance of the policy, and that it was in the hands of its agents Gordon Insurance & Investment Company, for delivery, and to tender said policy to said Margaret E. Williams for acceptance.

VII. That it was the duty of defendant Gordon Insurance & Investment Company, as agents for the said Philadelphia Life Insurance Company, within a reasonable time, to give said Margaret E. Williams notice of the action of said Philadelphia Life Insurance Company, upon the said application for insurance solicited by it, and that it was its duty, within a reasonable time, to notify said Margaret E. Williams that it had the policy placed in its hands for delivery, and to tender said policy to the said applicant for acceptance.

VIII. That in breach of their said duty in the premises the defendants negligently, wantonly, and willfully failed to notify said Margaret E. Williams of the action of the Philadelphia Life Insurance Company, upon the said application, and negligently, wantonly, and willfully failed to notify said Margaret E. Williams of the issuance of the said policy, and negligently, wantonly, and willfully failed to tender said policy to said Margaret E. Williams for acceptance; but, on the contrary, without any notice to said Margaret E. Williams, and without her knowledge, and without her consent, caused said policy to be returned to the said Philadelphia Life Insurance Company for cancellation.

IX. That said Margaret E. Williams, from the time of her application for insurance to the time of her death, relied upon the performance by defendants of their duty in reference to said insurance, and did not, on that account, make any attempt to procure insurance for her estate elsewhere, and that she would have accepted the policy and would have complied with the conditions of the policy issued as aforesaid, if opportunity had been presented her; and, if she had received notice that her said application had been rejected, she would have and could have procured such insurance for her estate in another company.

X. That by reason of the said negligent, wanton, and willful conduct...