Underinsured Motorist Coverage; Waiver - Johnson v. First Acceptance Ins. Co., Inc.

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Johnson v. First Acceptance Ins. Co., Inc., [Ms. 2150629, Jan. 6, 2017] __ So.3d __ (Ala. Civ. App. 2017). The Court of Civil Appeals reverses a summary judgment entered by the Lowndes Circuit Court in favor of First Acceptance Insurance Company, where the circuit court had held an applicant waived in writing his option to purchase uninsured/underinsured motorist benefits. See § 32-7-23(a), Ala. Code 1975 (statute interpreted in Continental Cas. Co. v. Pinkston, 941 So.2d 926, 929 (Ala. 2006), as "requiring that every automobile-liability-insurance policy issued or delivered in Alabama provide uninsured/underinsured-motorist coverage with limits for bodily injury or death of at least $25,000 per person, unless the coverage is specifically rejected in writing by the named insured."). Here, there was conflicting evidence from the deposition testimony of the policyholder and the local agent concerning the circumstances whereby the policyholder applied for such coverage electronically. Because there was a factual dispute about the material issue of whether the policyholder signed that part of the application that waived the UIM coverage, the Lowndes Circuit Court erred in entering a summary judgment in favor of the insurance company.

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