Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. v. Davis

Citations: 384 So. 2d 129; 1980 Ala. Civ. App. LEXIS 1051Docket: Civ. 2163

Court: Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama; May 28, 1980; Alabama; State Appellate Court

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The plaintiffs, who are a married couple, sued the defendant, Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, for unpaid funds under a hospitalization insurance contract. The District Court of Etowah County ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, and the defendant appealed, but the decision was affirmed.

Key facts include that the plaintiff-husband is employed by the defendant, which provides hospitalization insurance for employee spouses. The plaintiff-wife, a state-employed teacher, had access to state-provided funds for insurance premiums but chose not to enroll in the offered insurance, which would have covered $80 per day of hospitalization at no personal cost. After the plaintiff-wife was hospitalized for nine days, the defendant covered part of the bill but denied further liability, citing a "coordination of benefits" clause that suggested the defendant’s payment would depend on any other insurance coverage.

The defendant argued that the plaintiff-wife had a responsibility to enroll in the available insurance, asserting liability only for any amount exceeding what her insurance would have paid. However, the court held that the coordination of benefits clause explicitly applies when the spouse has coverage under another employer-sponsored plan, which was not the case here. The court emphasized the clarity of the contract terms, stating there was no ambiguity that could warrant interpretation. Consequently, there was no obligation for the plaintiff-wife to obtain the insurance, and the defendant was held liable for the full hospital bill. The ruling was affirmed with the concurrence of other judges.