Hartford Life & Annuity Insurance v. Gray

Citations

• 91 Ill. 159

Syllabus

<p>1. Life insurance—on false representations by assured. No recovery can be had upon a life policy of insurance which is obtained by fraud and misrepresentation on the part of the assured as to material facts affecting the risk, and the age of his parents at their death and the disease of which they died, and the fact whether the brothers and sisters of the assured were all living are material and must be truly stated in the application.</p> <p>2. Where the assured in his application answers “no” to the question, whether either of his parents, brothers or sisters ever had pulmonary, scrofulous or other constitutional or hereditary disease, the answer assumes his knowledge of the fact, and will preclude the plaintiff, in an action on the polcy, from alleging the want of knowledge on the part of the assured as an excuse for not answering correctly.</p> <p>3. Same—knowledge presumed of answers in application. There is no presumption that an applicant for a policy of insurance was ignorant and misinformed of the contents of the application signed by him, but it devolves upon those alleging such ignorance and want of information to make proof of it.</p> <p>This proof may be found in the peculiar circumstances shown as attendant upon the transaction, but is not established by the mere fact that the assured signed a paper written out by another, when no attempt is made to mislead or deceive him.</p> <p>4. Pleading and evidence. In an action on a life policy of insurance issued upon a written application, which is destroyed, when it is stipulated that the defendant may show any valid defence under the general issue the same as if specially pleaded, the pleadings will not bind the defendant to strict proof of any particular expression or phraseology in the application.</p>