Plaintiffs Lose Coverage Case Based Upon Limitations Period In Insurance Policy

Hoover v. Country Mutual Insurance Co., Ill: Appellate Court, 1st Dist., 3rd Div. 2012 - Google Scholar:

This case has a harsh result.  Plaintiffs home burned down, together with their homeowners insurance policy. They filed a lawsuit two years after the fire.  Their case was dismissed based upon the one-year limitation period in the insurance policy.  The court reasoned as follows:

"¶ 35 The suit limitation provision in the Hoovers' insurance policy provided that all suits against Country Mutual must be brought within one year of the date of the occurrence. In Cramer v. Insurance Exchange Agency, 174 Ill. 2d 513 (1996), our supreme court held that compliance with a suit limitation provision within a policy is a condition precedent to recovery under the policy. Cramer, 174 Ill. 2d at 530 (citing Schoonover v. American Family Insurance Co., 214 Ill. App. 3d 33, 44 (1991)). In Cramer, the insurance policy at issue had a one year suit limitation provision similar to the one in this case. The policy provision provided that a suit on the policy must be brought within one year of the loss. The court found that the plaintiff's suit was untimely because the plaintiff filed the complaint more than one year after the loss. Cramer, 174 Ill. 2d at 530. Here, the Hoovers' home was destroyed on January 12, 2008. The Hoovers filed their initial complaint against Country Mutual on March 3, 2010, more than two years after the explosion. Therefore, based on the one-year suit limitation provision in the policy, the Hoovers' breach of contract claim was untimely. Cramer, 174 Ill. 2d at 530."

Comment:  While this result is technically correct, this situation cries out for reform of insurance policies in Illinois.

Edward X. Clinton, Jr.

www.clintonlaw.net

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