UPDATE:
- The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) declined to hear State Farmโs appeal to a lower courtโs ruling upholding a $34 million jury trial award on Monday, April 27, 2021.
State Farm was hit with a $34.3 million trial verdict over class action allegations that the insurer took more from universal life insurance policyholdersโ accounts than permitted.
The State Farm universal life insurance deduction class action lawsuit claimed that the company used prohibited factors to calculate the cost of the universal life insurance products, leading to overpayment by policyholders.
The lead plaintiff alleged that he had overpaid by $3,000 for his $100,000 life insurance policy.
The insurance giant fought back and succeeded in getting punitive damages trimmed, arguing that it had not acted with reckless disregard or evil motive in assessing the policyholdersโ rates.
However, the company also argued that the State Farm universal life insurance deduction class action lawsuit should have been dismissed because it advertised maximum costs, but did not charge policyholders over the amount advertised.
โBecause State Farm charged Plaintiff COI rates consistent with the terms of his policy, there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact, and State Farm is entitled to judgment as a matter of law on all of plaintiffโs claims,โ stated the motion to dismiss the State Farm universal life insurance deduction class action lawsuit.
However, a federal court judge refused to toss the State Farm universal life insurance deduction class action lawsuit in its entirety.
After a four-day trial, State Farm was hit with the $34.4 million jury verdict. The jury found that the company engaged in breach of contract and conversion as alleged in the State Farm class action lawsuit.
The company had also asked the federal court to decertify the Class in the State Farm universal life insurance deduction class action lawsuit. Class Members who were not injured by State Farmsโ fee assessing practices should be removed, argued the insurer, as opposed to simply not receiving an award.
Further, argued the company, some members of the Class in the State Farm insurance class action lawsuit would actually be assessed at a higher rate.
According to the State Farm universal life insurance deduction class action lawsuit, the lead plaintiff purchased his universal life policy from the company in 1999.
The plaintiff alleged that although State Farm used age, sex, and race to determine his policy rates, the company also used โunauthorized factorsโ that led to a higher rate.
According to the plaintiff, this action led to him and other Class Members paying higher rates over long periods of time, 14 years in the plaintiffโs case, leading to thousands in damages.
State Farm fought the $34 million jury verdict. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the juryโs decision and SCOTUS declined to hear the insurerโs arguments.
โAfter employing every appeal and delay tactic available to it, State Farm will finally be obligated to pay the jury verdict returned nearly three years ago,โ a lawyer representing the plaintiffs told Law360 of the Supreme Courtโs decision not to hear the case.
Top Class Actions will continue to monitor this lawsuit for further developments.
Are you a Class Member in the State Farm universal life insurance class action lawsuit? Tell us about your experience in the comment section below!
The lead plaintiff and Class Members are represented by Patrick J. Stueve, Norman E. Siegel, Ethan M. Lange, and Lindsay Todd Perkins of Stueve Siegel Hanson LLP and John J. Schirger, Matthew W. Lytle, and Joseph M. Feierabend of Miller Schirger LLC.
The State Farm Universal Life Insurance Deduction Class Action Lawsuit is Vogt, et al. v. State Farm Life Insurance Co., Case No. 20-1008, in the U.S. Supreme Court.
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249 thoughts onJury Awards $34.3M in State Farm Life Insurance Fees Class Action
I had life insurance with state farm
.include me in the claim settlement
Vida Anderson
Please add me
Add me I have had State Life Insurance for over 10 years
State Farm years ago applied my payments on my โUniversal Life Cash Value Loanโ to interest instead of principal. When I inquired the interest rate charged against my loans coincidentally nearly doubled when U.S. Treasury rates were declining to historically lowest rates ever.
I questioned the rate increase and St. Farm replied the rates were in accordance with the policy and were increased on all cash value loans. That was incorrect because I own a policy on a family member and the loan interest rate on that loan did not increase.
Add me too. Iโve had State Farm for 14 years!
Please add me. I have 3 life insurance policies with state farm over $100000 since 1992.
Add me I had a life insurance policy with State Farm and the premium was increased by 100% after a period of time.
Add 3 from my family for the lawsuit.
Add me.
I have had a policy with them since 1980.Was supposed to be wonderful Still paying it Count me in
I have a policy with statefarm; email is ceebass37@gmail.com