DocketNumber: No. CV90 27 81 84 S
Citation Numbers: 1996 Conn. Super. Ct. 5779
Judges: THIM, JUDGE.
Filed Date: 8/9/1996
Status: Non-Precedential
Modified Date: 7/5/2016
The plaintiff alleges, inter alia, that her employer was insured by the defendant for the payment of workers' compensation benefits to injured employees, that she sustained an injury arising out of and in the course of employment, that she gave notice of the injury and complied with all reasonable requests of the insurer, and that she "was thereby entitled to the rights and benefits under the [Workers' Compensation] Act." The plaintiff further alleges that the defendant insurance company failed to provide plaintiff with "(a) payments under the Act; (b) a full, fair and reasonable investigation of the claim; and (C) a true and proper notice of the decision to withhold benefits due and the basis for that decision." In the third count, the plaintiff alleges the defendant violated the Connecticut Unfair Insurance Practices Act (CUIPA), General Statutes §
The defendant claims the third count should be stricken be for two reasons: (1) there is no private cause of action under CUIPA and (2) the plaintiff fails to allege a violation of CUIPA. The defendant claims the fourth should be stricken on the ground the plaintiff's allegations of misconduct do not constitute a violation of CUTPA. The defendant claims the fifth count should be stricken on the ground the plaintiff can not assert a cause of action for tortious interference with a contract because the defendant is a party to the contract at issue.
The first issue is whether CUIPA creates a private cause of action. This issue has been addressed in numerous Superior Court decisions. See CM Technology, Inc. v. Travelers Ins. Co., Superior Court, judicial district of Middlesex at Middletown, Docket No. 072968 (March 31, 1995, Stanley, J.); King v. Ehorn, Superior Court, Judicial District Ansonia-Milford at Milford, Docket No. 044381 (November 17, 1993, Rush, J.). This court concludes CUIPA does not create a private cause action. Since the plaintiff can not maintain a cause of action under CUIPA, the third count must be stricken. CT Page 5781
The defendant next contends the plaintiff has failed to allege a violation of CUIPA. The defendant raises this claim as a ground for striking the third and fourth counts. Because this court has just determined the third count must be stricken, this claim need not be addressed in the context of the third count. In the fourth count, the plaintiff alleges that the defendant's violation of CUIPA constitutes a violation of CUTPA. "[A] litigant complaining of unfair insurance practices [is] entitled to maintain a private right of action under CUTPA `for alleged unfair trade practices . . . .'" Mead v. Burns,
The plaintiff alleges the defendant violated two CUIPA provisions, section
"In requiring proof that the insurer has engaged in unfair claim settlement practices `with such frequency as to indicate a general business practice' the legislature has manifested a clear intent to exempt from coverage under CUIPA isolated instances of insurer misconduct." (Footnote omitted.) Lees v. Middlesex Ins.Co., supra, 229, 849. Accordingly, "claims of unfair settlement practices under CUIPA require a showing of more than a single act of insurance misconduct." Mead v. Burns, supra,
Thus, "[u]nder the guidelines set forth in Mead v. Burns,
supra, for a plaintiff to allege CUIPA . . . violations successfully the plaintiff must allege more than a single failure to settle a plaintiff's claim fairly. The plaintiff must allege that the defendant has committed the alleged wrongful acts with such frequency as to indicate a general business practice." Quimby v.Kimberly Clark Corp.,
Here, the plaintiff alleges that "[t]he defendant insurer has acted as aforesaid on other occasions such that its conduct appears to be a general business practice to discourage claims under its policies of insurance, breach its contractual and statutory duties to claimants covered under its contracts of insurance and deprive covered claimants of their rights and benefits due, thereby taking CT Page 5782 an unfair trade advantage against business competitors who truly, fairly and justly discharge their duties to covered claimants under the [Workers' Compensation] Act and their contracts of insurance."
In ruling on a motion to strike, the court must construe "The facts alleged in the complaint in a light most favorable to the pleader." R.K. Constructors, Inc. v. Fusco Corp.,
The plaintiff alleges that the defendant has committed the wrongful acts with such frequency as to indicate a general business practice. Additionally, the plaintiff alleges the wrongful acts with specificity. When these allegations are viewed in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, they support a cause of action for unfair settlement practices in violation of CUIPA. See Lamour v.Allstate Insurance Company, Superior Court, judicial district of Ansonia/Milford at Milford, Docket No. 049034 (February 15, 1995, Thompson, J.) (holding that the allegation that "the defendant has made it a general business practice to undervalue claims and require its insureds to file suit" is sufficient to withstand the motion to strike); but see Rotz v. Middlesex Mutual Assurance Co., Superior Court, judicial district of Fairfield at Bridgeport, Docket No. 307488 (January 27, 1995, Hauser, J.) (holding that the allegation that "the defendants . . . have acted as aforesaid on other occasions such that their conduct appears to be a general practice to discourage Workers' Compensation claims" was legally sufficient to support a claim that the defendants engaged in unfair trade settlement practices).
Because the plaintiff has alleged facts sufficient to support a CUIPA violation under §
The defendant has moved to strike the fifth count on the ground a cause of action for tortious interference with a contract can not be maintained against a party to the contract. The defendant argues that the plaintiff is alleging it interfered with the terms of the insurance policy. The plaintiff, on the other CT Page 5783 hand, argues that the defendant, by not complying with the terms of the insurance policy, tortiously interfered with the contract between her and her employer for the provision of workers' compensation benefits.
"This court has long recognized a cause of action for tortious interference with contract rights or other business relations."Blake v. Levy,
In support of her argument, the plaintiff relies on three paragraphs of the fifth count. In paragraph one, the plaintiff alleges that she was an employee, as the term is defined in the Workers' Compensation Act. In the third paragraph, the plaintiff alleges that her employer is subject to the provisions of the Workers' Compensation Act. Finally, the plaintiff alleges in paragraph six that her employer had insured the payment of its workers' compensation liability with the defendant.
The allegations of the complaint do not support a cause of action for tortious interference with the employment contract. "The elements of tortious interference are the existence of a contractual or beneficial relationship, the defendant's knowledge of that relationship, the intent to interfere with it and the consequent actual loss suffered by the plaintiff." Beizer v.Goepfert,
The motion to strike the third and fifth counts of the revised complaint is granted. The motion to strike the fourth count is denied.
THIM, JUDGE