292 Mass. 575 | Mass. | 1935
This is an action of contract brought by the plaintiff, a former employee of the Franklin Motor Car Company, herein referred to as the employer, against the Aetna Life Insurance Company, herein referred to as the company, to recover total and permanent disability bene
The defendant contends that the verdict for it was directed rightly, on the grounds (a) that the plaintiff was not the proper party to maintain the action, (b) that the plaintiff’s insurance was terminated before he gave notice of any claim of disability, and (c) that the plaintiff defaulted in his payments. The direction of the verdict cannot be sustained on any of these grounds.
A policy of so called group insurance purporting to have been issued by the company to the employer, dated January 7, 1924, was introduced in evidence. By this policy the company, in consideration of the application of the employer and the payment of an annual premium, agreed to pay a certain amount — $1,000 in the case of an employee of the plaintiff’s class — on due proof of the death of any insured employee of the employer. And the policy contained these provisions among others: “Employees . . . entering service after the policy date will be eligible for insurance upon completion of six months of continuous service. Insurance hereunder will be effective only for eligible employees who make written application therefor and agree to contribute the required portion of the premium to the employer. Employees who apply to the employer for insurance here
The application addressed to the company, signed by the plaintiff, was introduced in evidence. It names the plaintiff’s wife, Margaret Shea, as "death beneficiary,” and contains the statement "I hereby apply for Life Insurance in amount of $1000 in accordance with the terms of the Group Policy issued to my employer, and authorize the deduction of 60c per month from my wages as my contribution toward the cost of this insurance.” A certificate signed by the company was also introduced in evidence reciting that the defendant had insured the lives of certain employees of the employer by the group policy of insurance above referred to, that "Under and subject to the terms and conditions of said policy, and the application therefor” the life of the plaintiff was "insured for the sum of one thousand dollars, in favor of Margaret Shea — wife beneficiary,” and that “This insurance will be terminated whenever said employee fails to make the required premium contribution or ceases to be in the employ of said employer.”
There was evidence that the plaintiff entered the employment of the employer October 26, 1931, and that some insurance premiums were withheld by the employer from his wages or paid by the plaintiff to the employer. The company in reply to a notice to admit facts under G. L. (Ter. Ed.) c. 231, § 69, admitted that the policy of group insurance and the certificate above referred to “became of full force and effect so far as relative to the plaintiff on April 26,
1. On facts which could have been found and the terms of the policy and of the plaintiff’s application rightly interpreted, the plaintiff is a proper party to maintain this action.
The plaintiff, according to the terms of the insurance contract contained in the policy and in the plaintiff’s application, was a party to that contract. The policy originally was a contract between the employer and the company. But it contemplated that by making an application for insurance thereunder an employee might become a party thereto. The plaintiff made such an application by which he applied for insurance in accordance with the terms of the policy, and by these terms his application became a part of the insurance contract. See G. L. (Ter. Ed.) c. 175, §§ 24, 134, cl. 2; Beecey v. Travelers Ins. Co. 267 Mass. 135, 138; Duval v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. 82 N. H. 543, 550; Smithart v. John Hancock Mutual Life Ins. Co. 167 Tenn. 513, 527. Insurance under the policy, so far as applicable to this plaintiff, was upon his life and against his disability. The policy refers to employees as “insured” thereunder and to “the insurance protection to which the employee is entitled.” See G. L. (Ter. Ed.) c. 175, § 134, cls. 2, 4. The premium paid by the employer was in part paid by it for the plaintiff and such payment was impliedly ratified by him by authorizing the deduction of monthly payments from his wages as his “contribution toward the cost of this insurance.” In these circumstances
No person is specifically named in the insurance contract as the beneficiary of disability benefits payable thereunder. Neither the employer nor the plaintiff’s wife is so named. Whether, even if the employer had been so named, it would have been entitled to the disability benefits need not be decided. Compare Carruth v. Aetna Life Ins. Co. 157 Ga. 608, 616. At least under the insurance contract against disability of the plaintiff made with the plaintiff as the insured person, though the employer is also a party to the contract, the employer is not by implication the beneficiary of disability benefits. And the plaintiff’s wife, though named as “death beneficiary” under the insurance contract, is not for that reason also the beneficiary of disability benefits. See Foster v. North Carolina Mutual Life Ins. Co. 150 S. C. 482, 489. The clear implication from the contract of the company with the plaintiff for insurance against his own disability, which names no beneficiary for disability benefits, is that the plaintiff is such beneficiary. Lewis v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. 178 Mass. 52, 54. Pettit v. Prudential Ins. Co. 231 Mass. 394, 396,
2. The direction of the verdict for the defendant cannot be sustained on the ground that the plaintiff’s insurance was terminated before he gave notice to the company of any claim of disability.
The company’s contention on this point is in substance that the insurance contract as to the plaintiff was cancelled by the employer before the liability of the company for disability benefits attached. The company contends that the employer had a right to cancel the policy as of August 23, 1932, or at least as of thirty-one days thereafter, but that even if it had no such right to cancel the policy as of that time such policy was effectively cancelled as between the plaintiff and the company.
The burden rested on the plaintiff of proving that the policy was in force as to him at the time liability thereunder for disability benefits attached by reason of his total and permanent disability. Kowalski v. Aetna Life Ins. Co. 266 Mass. 255, 261-262.
On the special findings, the admissions of the company and the evidence, it could have been found that the plaintiff became totally and permanently disabled after the policy became in force as to him —• April 26, 1932 — while he was employed by the employer, while neither the employer nor the plaintiff was in default as to premiums and before the purported cancellation of the policy.
There was evidence that, though the plaintiff did not work for the employer after April, 1932, he was kept on the employer’s pay roll until July 23, 1932, that in the period after April, 1932, extending into July, 1932, from time to time he reported to the employer his inability to work, and that the plaintiff's employment was terminated July 23, 1932. It could have been found that his employment was not terminated before that date. Though inability of an employee to perform the work for which he is
There was evidence that the premium payable by the employer covering insurance on the plaintiff under the policy was paid in full by the employer in advance, and that the required contributions of the plaintiff toward the cost of such insurance to the end of July, 1932, either were withheld by the employer from the plaintiff’s wages or paid to the employer by the plaintiff. Furthermore, it could have been found on the basis of the specific findings and the evidence of the plaintiff’s inability to work that he became totally disabled not earlier than April 26, 1932, and not later than July 23, 1932, while he was employed by the employer, and that this total disability was permanent.
The liability of the company to pay, disability benefits to the plaintiff attached when he became totally and permanently disabled between April 26, 1932, and July 23, 1932, though the payment of such benefits was subject to the .condition precedent that the permanent nature of the disability be proved in the manner prescribed by the insurance contract. The existence of his total disability “for a period of six months” was an essential element of proof of
There is nothing in the insurance contract which makes notice to the company of the existence of total disability a condition precedent to the liability of the company to pay disability benefits, though due proof is required, if not waived, as a condition precedent to the collection of such benefits.
The evidence tended to show that the employer attempted to cancel the insurance because of the previous termination of the plaintiff’s employment. If, however, as could have been found, the plaintiff became totally and permanently disabled while employed by the employer and while the insurance contract was in force, the liability for disability benefits then attached and the employer could not thereafter cancel such insurance because of the termination of the plaintiff’s employment, at least where, as could have been found, such employment was terminated by reason of the plaintiff’s total disability. Prudential Ins. Co. v. Cox, 254 Ky. 98. Murray v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. 145 Miss. 266. Turley v. John Hancock Mutual Life Ins. Co. 315 Penn. St. 245, 249. Furthermore, if, as could have been found, there was no “failure” on the part of the plaintiff “to pay the required premium contribution for this insurance” prior to the termination of his employment by reason of his total disability, the insurance could not have been cancelled by the employer for failure to make such contribution. The provisions for such contribution contemplate deductions thereof from the plaintiff’s “wages” and by necessary inference were inapplicable after his employment terminated by reason of his total disability. It
3. The direction of the verdict for the defendant cannot be sustained on the ground that the plaintiff defaulted in his payments.
Under the insurance contract payment of premiums to the company covering insurance to the plaintiff was to be made by the employer and the plaintiff was to contribute to the employer toward the cost of his insurance. The employer was not in default with respect to such payment of premiums. The provision in the policy for waiver by the company of further payment of premiums upon receipt by it of “due proof” of “total and permanent disability” of an employee applies to payment of premiums by the employer but not to contribution by the employee toward the cost of his insurance. The case of Bergholm v. Peoria Life Ins. Co. 284 U. S. 489, therefore, is inapplicable. Though the provision for such contribution is included in the contract to which the company was a party, such contribution was to be made to the employer and the remedy for the employee’s “failure to make the required premium contribution,” was that the employer “effect the cancellation of insurance” on such employee. Apart from such cancellation, which, as could have been found, was not effectively made in this case, failure of the employee to contribute did not affect his rights to benefits as against the company.
The company admitted that demand was made upon it by the plaintiff “for the benefit payable under the clause providing compensation for total and permanent disability.” And, apparently by reason of an admission of denial of liability on the part of the company, the company makes no
It follows that in accordance with the stipulation “judgment is to be entered for the plaintiff in the sum of one thousand dollars with interest from March 16, 1933, the date of the writ.”
So ordered.