Union Insurance Company v. Blakeney Palmer Co LLC, 7:12-cv-04072

Insurance dispute in N.D. Alabama involving Union Insurance and Blakeney Palmer Co. over tornado damage to University Village (Tuscaloosa) in 2011.
Plaintiff paid initial claim of $877,682.09; defendant claimed repairs and later sought more damages.
Defendant submitted a supplemental claim for $2,292,753.84, arguing initial repairs were only partial and more work was needed.
Plaintiff investigated and found some repairs not performed and questioned the supplemental claim; filed a declaratory judgment to void the policy under Ala. Code § 27-14-28 for alleged fraud.
Evidence includes initial and revised estimates by Blakeney Company, sworn proofs of loss, and communications about depreciation recoverable.
The court denied both parties’ summary-judgment motions, finding genuine issues of material fact as to intent to deceive.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether misrepresentations in Proof of Loss were made with actual intent to deceive	Plaintiff contends misrepresentations were intentional and material	Defendant argues no proven intent to deceive	Genuine issues of material fact; summary judgment denied
Whether the overvaluation of $2,292,753.84 is so extravagant as to prove intent to deceive as a matter of law	Overvaluation shows intent to deceive	Overvaluation may be plausibly explained; not necessarily deceit	Not determined as a matter of law; jury must resolve issue of intent
Whether there is undisputed evidence that the supplemental claim relates to non-covered damages or unperformed prior repairs	Record shows non-covered damages and incomplete initial repairs	Explanations for supplemental claim plausible; coverage issues disputed	Genuine issues of material fact; cannot grant summary judgment on coverage/ fraud

Murphy v. Droke, 668 So.2d 513 (Ala. 1995) (intent to deceive questions for the jury)
Hartford Fire Ins. Co. v. Clark, 61 So.2d 19 (Ala. 1952) (overvaluation must be extreme to show intent to defraud)
Ex parte State Farm and Casualty Co., 523 So.2d 119 (Ala. 1988) (public policy against fraud in insurance claims)