McDonald v. Beneficial Standard Life Ins. Co.

Harshbarger, Justice:

Beneficial Standard Life Insurance Company brings this appeal from the Circuit Court of Grant County, where a jury found against it and returned a $7,460.00 verdict favoring Jackie W. McDonald. McDonald’s suit against Beneficial was inspired by the company’s failure to pay him disability benefits after open heart surgery.

The company’s defense was that he did not tell its agent that he had heart or blood vessel disease when he applied for the insurance; that it would not have insured him if he had made an accurate disclosure of his medical history; and therefore the policy…