DALLAS - The Fifth Court of Appeals recently affirmed a ruling granting a motion to certify a class in litigation brought against the USAA Casualty Insurance Company.
According to the Fifth Court's Feb. 10 opinion, the motion to certify was brought by Sunny Letot. In seeking class certification, Letot alleged that she had nearly completed restoration of a 1983 Mercedes Benz 300SD when Evan Crosby, who was insured by USAA, Collided with her. Letot filed a claim with USAA for repair of her Mercedes.
A USAA employee determined the value of Letot’s Mercedes was $2,728 but the repair estimate was $8,859, determining the Mercedes was a “total loss,” the opinion states. She then notified USAA that she disagreed with the valuation and refused to accept USAA’s offer of payment. Nevertheless, USAA tendered checks totaling $2,738.02 to Letot. Letot’s counsel returned the checks to USAA and demanded that USAA pay Letot $10,700 in damages.
On Jan. 22, 2009, without Letot’s knowledge or consent, USAA filed with the Texas Department of Transportation an owner retained report, which stated that “a claim was paid to” Letot and indicated that TXDOT “should not recognize subsequent transfer of ownership until” a salvage vehicle title was issued for the Mercedes, the opinion states.
Letot was unaware of the filing and its consequences until TxDOT notified her of the vehicle’s status on Jan. 30, 2009. She immediately demanded that USAA inform TxDOT that the Mercedes was not salvage, but USAA took no action, the opinion states.
According to the Fifth Court’s opinion, discovery later revealed that the procedure USAA used to handle Letot’s claim was routine at USAA. USAA’s procedure was to file the owner retained reports immediately after it issued a check to a claimant, regardless of whether the claimant was given an opportunity to accept the check or whether the check was even mailed. Discovery also revealed that USAA files eighty to one hundred owner retained reports per week.
On appeal, USAA argued that the trial court abused its discretion by certifying the class.
The Fifth Court found that none of USAA’s cited authorities demonstrate that the trial court abused its discretion.
USAA is represented by Robert Owen and Levon Hovnatanian, attorneys for the Martin, Disiere, Jefferson & Wisdom law firm in Dallas.
Letot is represented by Dallas attorneys Jeffrey Tillotson and Austen Irrobali.
Case No. 05-20-01019-CV