Polizzi v. Commercial Fire Insurance

Citations

• 255 Pa. 297
• 99 A. 907
• 1917 Pa. LEXIS 450

Syllabus

<p>Insurance — Fire insurance — Loss—Alleged adjustment of loss— Evidence — Sufficiency—Evidence of loss — Incompetent evidence— Inventory — Boohs of insured — Estoppel—Waiver.</p> <p>1. In an action on a fire insurance policy, insuring á stock of merchandise which had been destroyed by fire, it appeared that an insurance adjuster representing plaintiff met an agent of defendant company and discussed the subject of the -loss; that .thereafter plaintiff submitted a proof of loss to which was attached a paper entitled “Statement of Loss,” under which appeared the words, “as agreed in detail between assured and adjuster,” followed by certain gross items. About one month thereafter, plaintiff produced certain books knd papers at the office of defendant’s attorney, at which time plaintiff’s adjuster stated that defendant’s agent “and I agreed upon the measure of damages on the 19th of December, 1913, at $3,324.32, made up as follows,” men-, tioning the several gross items referred to in the statement of loss. About two months thereafter defendant notified plaintiff that it declined to pay his loss. There was no evidence to show that defendant’s agent had authority to agree upon a figure that defendant would pay. Held, that the- statement attached to the proof of loss, and the statement of plaintiff’s adjuster at the meeting, that defendant’s agent “and I .agreed upon the measure of damages,” were not sufficiently clear, comprehensive or specific to put the defendant on notice that plaintiff claimed that the amount of loss had been definitely adjusted or agreed to by defendant’s agent, purporting to act on behalf of defendant, so as to estop the defendant from denying such to be the fact at the trial or sufficient in themselves to justify a finding that the so-called adjustment had taken place. ’</p> <p>2. Where, in such case, plaintiff could pot read or write English, and produced copies of bills rendered to him by various persons for goods purchased prior to the fire, b