A jury has ordered California Automobile Insurance Co. to pay more than $450,000 to an elderly couple who alleged that they were wrongfully denied proper coverage and benefits after a pipe broke in their San Fernando Valley home in 2022.
Dal Woong Park and his wife, Seung Ran Park, were 80 and 76 years old, respectively, when they brought the breach of contract and negligent misrepresentation suit in Los Angeles Superior Court in June 2022. Dal Park is permanently disabled from a traumatic brain injury and stroke, according to the suit, which also stated that the event forced the pair into inferior housing and caused the husband to become irritable and at times violent.
On Monday, the jury awarded the couple a total of $463,075. In their court papers, CAIC attorneys denied any wrongdoing and said the insurer fulfilled its obligations to the couple.
But according to the suit, the couple’s complaint arose out of “an insurer’s bad-faith delays and refusals to pay benefits contractually owed to its insureds under a homeowners insurance policy. The insurer’s conduct shocks the conscience.”
The couple bought a homeowners policy in December 2021 for their one-story, 3,200-square-foot, ranch-style home on Vintage Street in Northridge, the suit stated. The policy provided that if the couple’s home is not fit to be habitable, CAIC would cover any necessary increase in living expenses incurred by the plaintiffs so they can maintain their normal standard of living, according to the suit.
The couple filed a claim in January 2022 after a water pipe under their concrete slab foundation leaked and caused damage, the suit states. CAIC had an obligation to tell the plaintiffs their rights, review the claim in good faith, confirm coverage, assist the couple in relocating to a house that would allow them to maintain their normal standard of living and pay for repairs, the suit stated.
“Instead, the insurer has dragged its feet, transferred the claim to multiple new adjusters, insisted on countless, never-ending inspections, refused to confirm coverage in a timely manner and refused reasonable payment for repairs and loss of use required by its policy,” the suit stated.
CAIC repeatedly ignored emails and calls and refused to provide the plaintiffs updates as the law requires, the suit stated.
Due to the husband’s brain injury and prior stroke, he becomes easily confused and agitated, can get around only with the assistance of a wheelchair and cane and is cared for by his wife, the suit stated.
The couple was forced to move out of their one-story home that accommodates their needs and initially reside in their son’s two-story house before being given housing at a motel, the suit stated. At minimum, the insurer should have provided replacement housing that maintained the plaintiffs’ standard of living, the suit stated.
CAIC offered a $4,000 monthly stipend from Jan. 17 to June 15, 2022, but it was not enough to maintain their standard of living, the suit stated.
Due to the lengthy displacement and living conditions, the couple’s health deteriorated substantially and the husband’s agitation increased, according to the suit.