{ "id": 9440998, "name": "WILLIAM C. ERLER, d/b/a WEST END OFFICE BUILDING and HUNTER TEXTBOOKS, INC., Plaintiffs v. AON RISKS SERVICES, INC. OF THE CAROLINAS (formerly Rollins, Hudig Hall of the Carolinas, Inc.) and SUSAN COTHREN, Defendants", "name_abbreviation": "Erler v. Aon Risks Services, Inc. of Carolinas", "decision_date": "2000-12-29", "docket_number": "No. COA99-1274", "first_page": "312", "last_page": "321", "citations": [ { "type": "official", "cite": "141 N.C. App. 312" } ], "court": { "name_abbreviation": "N.C. Ct. App.", "id": 14983, "name": "North Carolina Court of Appeals" }, "jurisdiction": { "id": 5, "name_long": "North Carolina", "name": "N.C." }, "cites_to": [ { "cite": "N.C. Gen. Stat. \u00a7 58-63-15", "category": "laws:leg_statute", "reporter": "N.C. Gen. Stat.", "pin_cites": [ { "page": "(l)(1999)" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "N.C. Gen. Stat. \u00a7 75-1.1", "category": "laws:leg_statute", "reporter": "N.C. Gen. Stat.", "year": 1999, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "402 S.E.2d 824", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1991, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "328 N.C. 89", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 2540625, 2542964, 2545140, 2542137, 2541311 ], "year": 1991, "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc/328/0089-05", "/nc/328/0089-02", "/nc/328/0089-04", "/nc/328/0089-03", "/nc/328/0089-01" ] }, { "cite": "394 S.E.2d 643", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "weight": 4, "year": 1990, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "651" }, { "page": "650" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "99 N.C. App. 587", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C. App.", "case_ids": [ 8524249 ], "year": 1990, "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc-app/99/0587-01" ] }, { "cite": "277 S.E.2d 811", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "weight": 2, "year": 1981, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "814" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "52 N.C. App. 60", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C. App.", "case_ids": [ 12169986 ], "year": 1981, "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc-app/52/0060-01" ] }, { "cite": "144 S.E.2d 21", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1965, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "26" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "265 N.C. 291", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 8575059 ], "year": 1965, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "297" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc/265/0291-01" ] }, { "cite": "395 S.E.2d 112", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1990, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "327 N.C. 412", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 2497334 ], "year": 1990, "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc/327/0412-01" ] }, { "cite": "257 S.E.2d 671", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "weight": 2, "year": 1979, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "673" }, { "page": "673" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "43 N.C. App. 56", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C. App.", "case_ids": [ 8549782 ], "year": 1979, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "58" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc-app/43/0056-01" ] }, { "cite": "442 S.E.2d 567", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "weight": 3, "year": 1994, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "570-71" }, { "page": "568" }, { "page": "571" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "114 N.C. App. 562", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C. App.", "case_ids": [ 8527820 ], "year": 1994, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "567" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc-app/114/0562-01" ] }, { "cite": "511 S.E.2d 309", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1999, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "132 N.C. App. 341", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C. App.", "case_ids": [ 11237793 ], "year": 1999, "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc-app/132/0341-01" ] }, { "cite": "407 S.E.2d 178", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1991, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "329 N.C. 646", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 2555838 ], "year": 1991, "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc/329/0646-01" ] }, { "cite": "367 S.E.2d 609", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1988, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "612" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "322 N.C. 200", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 2516944 ], "year": 1988, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "206" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc/322/0200-01" ] }, { "cite": "535 S.E.2d 109", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 2000, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "115-16" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "140 N.C. 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App.", "case_ids": [ 8525350 ], "year": 1983, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "442" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc-app/63/0439-01" ] } ], "analysis": { "cardinality": 958, "char_count": 22994, "ocr_confidence": 0.761, "pagerank": { "raw": 1.0939897431261887e-07, "percentile": 0.566398851824952 }, "sha256": "528d4ddc0e23abcd2ba935280b650419f4a6b1ecbf1ecdb06e27efa71554dbbb", "simhash": "1:4f83d478ae4e246b", "word_count": 3644 }, "last_updated": "2023-07-14T21:28:13.659098+00:00", "provenance": { "date_added": "2019-08-29", "source": "Harvard", "batch": "2018" }, "casebody": { "judges": [ "Judges LEWIS and HUNTER concur." ], "parties": [ "WILLIAM C. ERLER, d/b/a WEST END OFFICE BUILDING and HUNTER TEXTBOOKS, INC., Plaintiffs v. AON RISKS SERVICES, INC. OF THE CAROLINAS (formerly Rollins, Hudig Hall of the Carolinas, Inc.) and SUSAN COTHREN, Defendants" ], "opinions": [ { "text": "WALKER, Judge.\nIn 1984, plaintiffs purchased a building at 823 Reynolda Road in Winston-Salem. This building contains three floors and sits on a sloped grade such that the front entrance opens into the second floor. The first, or lowest, floor is accessible from the rear through a garage door and rear entrance door. Plaintiffs used this lower floor as an inventory storage area. In June of 1996, the building\u2019s lower floor was flooded during a storm, and much of plaintiffs\u2019 inventory of textbooks was destroyed. Plaintiffs then contacted defendant Susan Cothren (Cothren), an employee of defendant Aon Risk Services (Aon), who wrote flood insurance policies and inquired about expanding their current National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policy to cover the contents of the lower floor.\nThe Standard Flood Insurance Policy (SFIP), issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), allows coverage to be expanded to \u201ccontents\u201d but excludes contents stored in a \u201cbasement.\u201d A \u201cbasement\u201d is defined by the NFIP as \u201cany area of the building having its floor subgrade on all sides.\u201d Based on a description of the building given to Cothren by plaintiffs, Cothren initially informed plaintiffs on 17 July 1996 that she believed the lower floor was not a \u201cbasement.\u201d On 18 July 1996, Cothren visited the building, and after speaking with a representative of the NFIP, she confirmed to plaintiffs that the lower floor was not a \u201cbasement\u201d and that their insurance could be expanded to cover the contents of that floor. Cothren based this advice on the fact that the lower floor had a garage door which'opened out onto the driveway, thereby making it a \u201cwalkout.\u201d Cothren believed that a \u201cwalkout\u201d was classified separately from a \u201cbasement\u201d and thus eligible for contents coverage. In her testimony, Cothren admitted that the SFIP does not contain such an exception for a \u201cwalkout.\u201d In August 1996, plaintiffs\u2019 application for expanded coverage was accepted by the NFIP and plaintiffs began paying an additional premium.\nIn May 1998, plaintiffs\u2019 building again flooded destroying the inventory located on the lower floor. Plaintiffs valued this loss of inventory at $307,958.00 and reported the loss to the NFIP who sent a claims adjuster, Eddie Adams, to examine the damage. Mr. Adams consulted an engineer, John Gardner, who examined the building and determined that the lower floor was a \u201cbasement\u201d because it \u201cis below the elevation of the grade on all sides.\u201d Based on this determination, the NFIP denied plaintiffs\u2019 claim on the basis that the lower floor was in fact a \u201cbasement\u201d and that there was no coverage for contents in basement areas. Plaintiffs subsequently filed suit against Aon and Cothren alleging negligent misrepresentation, unfair and deceptive trade practices, and respondeat superior. At trial, the trial court granted defendants\u2019 motion for a directed verdict as to plaintiffs\u2019 claim of unfair and deceptive trade practices, and submitted issues on negligent misrepresentation and contributory negligence. The jury answered the issues in favor of the plaintiffs and returned a verdict in the amount of $280,001.\nWe first address defendants\u2019 assignments of error. After plaintiffs filed the present lawsuit, they filed an action against FEMA in federal court seeking payment for the loss under the policy. FEMA filed a motion to dismiss on the basis that the proof of claim was not timely filed and that plaintiffs\u2019 policy did not cover contents stored in the lower floor because it was classified as a \u201cbasement.\u201d Plaintiffs then voluntarily dismissed the federal action. Defendants claim this dismissal prevented plaintiffs from obtaining a judicial determination on whether the policy provided coverage and thus \u201cconstitutes a waiver and/or estoppel that bars their claims against the defendants as a matter of law.\u201d In response, plaintiffs assert that when FEMA denied their claim, plaintiffs dismissed that action only after their own experts concluded that the lower floor was a \u201cbasement.\u201d\nIn support of this action, plaintiffs contend the following general rule applies:\nIt is not necessary for insured, in order to recover from the broker or agent, to show that he has sued the insurance company, it being sufficient to show that the policy is defective or invalid and that the company has refused to pay either in whole or in part. The refusal to cover the loss may be inferred from the insurance company\u2019s failure to pay claims or to respond to insured\u2019s demand for payment.\n44 C.J.S. Insurance \u00a7 216 (1993).\nPlaintiffs are not barred from bringing suit against defendants merely because their previous suit was voluntarily dismissed. For plaintiffs\u2019 current claim to be barred, defendants must show (1) a final judgment on the merits in an earlier suit, (2) an identity of the cause of action in both the earlier and the later suit, and (3) an identity of parties or their privies in the two suits. Hogan v. Cone Mills Corp., 63 N.C. App. 439, 442, 305 S.E.2d 213, 215 (1983). Claim preclusion only arises in actions between the same parties or those \u201cso identified in interest as to represent the same legal right. Privity is not established by the mere presence of a similar interest in a claim, nor by the fact that the previous adjudication may affect the subsequent party\u2019s liability.\u201d Kaminsky v. Sebile, 140 N.C. App. 71, 81, 535 S.E.2d 109, 115-16 (2000).\nIn the case at bar, defendants have different interests than those of FEMA. Plaintiffs\u2019 claim in the federal action was dependent on the lower floor being classified as other than a \u201cbasement.\u201d Whereas, in the present action, plaintiffs concede that the lower floor should have been classified as a \u201cbasement\u201d but contend that Cothren misrepresented that it was not a \u201cbasement.\u201d Thus, the rights and interests of the parties in these cases do not rise to the level of similarity necessary to invoke claim preclusion.\nDefendants further argue that plaintiffs stipulated to the validity of the NFIP policy in the pre-trial order, thus barring them from introducing evidence that the policy did not provide coverage for the contents located on the lower floor as required to maintain this action. The stipulations in the pre-trial order state, in pertinent part:\nh. A NFIP policy, with coverage for contents located on the lower level of the Hunter Textbooks building, was in force during the month of May, 1998.\ni. The amount of insurance for contents covered by the flood insurance policy was $400,000.\nDefendants assert that these stipulations conclusively establish that the policy at issue was valid and therefore bars these claims. However, we conclude these stipulations only establish the existence of the policy at the time of the loss.\nDefendants\u2019 second assignment of error is that insufficient evidence exists to support a finding that Cothren negligently misrepresented to plaintiffs that the lower floor was not a \u201cbasement\u201d within the meaning of the NFIP policy. Our Supreme Court has held \u201c[t]he tort of negligent misrepresentation occurs when a party justifiably relies to his detriment on information prepared without reasonable care by one who owed the relying party a duty of care.\u201d Raritan River Steel Co. v. Cherry, Bekaert & Holland, 322 N.C. 200, 206, 367 S.E.2d 609, 612 (1988), reversed on other grounds, 329 N.C. 646, 407 S.E.2d 178 (1991); see also Hudson-Cole Dev. Corp. v. Beemer, 132 N.C. App. 341, 511 S.E.2d 309 (1999). Defendants argue that plaintiffs failed to prove either that the representations were false or misleading or that Cothren failed to exercise reasonable care in forming these representations.\nPlaintiffs presented the testimony of three witnesses that the lower floor was a \u201cbasement.\u201d Ed Stout, a civil engineer and land surveyor, testified that the lower floor is a basement because it is \u201cbelow the surface . . . [on] all four sides.\u201d Similarly, John Gamer, a civil, structural engineer who investigates claims of structural losses for the NFIP, testified that the lower level was subgrade on all four sides, thus classifying it as a \u201cbasement.\u201d Finally, Eddie Adams, an independent adjuster, testified that he is certified by FEMA to make a determination of whether an area should be classified as a \u201cbasement.\u201d Further, he testified that he had handled more than 1,100 flood claims for FEMA and that thirty to forty claims each year involve NFIP\u2019s definition of a \u201cbasement.\u201d Mr. Adams stated that he believed the lower floor was a basement and that Cothren should have known it was a basement. This evidence supports a classification of the lower floor as a \u201cbasement\u201d within the meaning of the NFIP policy.\nNevertheless, defendants contend that plaintiffs failed to present sufficient evidence of negligent misrepresentation because they did not offer evidence of the standard of care to which Cothren should be held. Defendants argue that the determination of whether the lower floor is a \u201cbasement\u201d required Cothren to exercise specialized knowledge of the NFIP\u2019s complex definition, thus expert testimony was necessary to establish a standard of care. The trial court denied defendants\u2019 request for such instruction and instead instructed the jury to find that Cothren failed to exercise \u201creasonable care\u201d meaning \u201cthat degree of care, knowledge, intelligence and judgment which a prudent person would use under the same or similar circumstances.\u201d\nIn the context of legal and medical malpractice, this Court has stated that \u201c[e]xpert testimony is not required, however, to establish the standard of care, failure to comply with the standard of care, or proximate cause, in situations where a jury, based on its common knowledge and experience, is able to decide those issues.\u201d Little v. Matthewson, 114 N.C. App. 562, 567, 442 S.E.2d 567, 570-71 (1994). This Court went on to state that the \u201ccommon knowledge exception\u201d is applicable in situations where the actions at issue are \u201cof such a nature that the common knowledge of laypersons is sufficient to find the standard of care required, a departure therefrom, or proximate causation.\u201d Id. at 568, 442 S.E.2d at 571. In applying these principles to this case, we conclude that the issue of whether Cothren negligently misrepresented to plaintiffs that the lower floor qualified for contents coverage is an issue which the jury, based on \u201ccommon knowledge and experience,\u201d would be able to decide.\nDefendants\u2019 next assignment of error is that the evidence of damages presented by plaintiffs was insufficient to support the jury\u2019s verdict. In particular, defendants claim that the method used for counting the damaged inventory was inaccurate. At trial, plaintiffs presented the testimony of Doug Johnson, Hunter Textbooks\u2019 accountant since 1991, who testified that he had developed an inventory accounting method that involved keeping a \u201cperpetual inventory\u201d whereby the quantity and cost of each book was entered into a computer database as the costs were incurred. Thus, plaintiffs could determine the approximate value of their inventory at any given time. He further testified that the damages amount claimed by the plaintiffs was derived by comparing the value of the inventory after the flood to the value of the inventory before the flood as determined by the \u201cperpetual inventory\u201d in the computer database.\nDefendants argue that this method is inaccurate and that damages should have been based on an actual count of damaged books. After the flood, plaintiffs hired Mid-South Disaster Response to assist in the clean-up. Mid-South conducted an actual count of the books as they were discarded under plaintiffs\u2019 supervision. However, Doug Johnson testified that he did not completely rely on these figures because \u201cthe staff did not feel like they were counted very well.\u201d Defendants assert that if the damages were based on the actual count, they would be significantly lower than those based on \u201cinventory reconciliation.\u201d\n\u201cTo be entitled to compensatory damages plaintiff must show... the amount of loss with reasonable certainty.\u201d Phillips v. Insurance Co., 43 N.C. App. 56, 58, 257 S.E.2d 671, 673 (1979). \u201c[W]here actual pecuniary damages are sought, there must be evidence of their existence and extent, and some data from which they may be computed.\u201d Id. at 58-59, 257 S.E.2d at 673. Here, there was evidence of plaintiffs\u2019 damages based on their \u201cperpetual inventory\u201d and evidence that the loss calculation should have been based on an actual count. Plaintiffs\u2019 evidence was not so speculative as to be inadmissible. Thus, sufficient evidence existed to support the jury\u2019s award of damages.\nIn the record on appeal, the defendants assigned as error the trial court\u2019s exclusion of certain exhibits which they claim adversely impacted their defense of contributory negligence. However, defendants now confine their argument to the contention that the plaintiffs were contributorily negligent as a matter of law. The issues of proximate cause and contributory negligence are usually questions for the jury. Lamm v. Bissette Realty, 327 N.C. 412, 395 S.E.2d 112 (1990). Only if the evidence, considered in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, affirmatively shows contributory negligence \u201cso clearly that no other conclusion can be reasonably drawn therefrom\u201d is the defendant entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Wallsee v. Water Co., 265 N.C. 291, 297, 144 S.E.2d 21, 26 (1965). After review, we agree with the trial court that the evidence does not establish contributory negligence as a matter of law and the issue was properly submitted to the jury.\nLastly, defendants argue the trial court abused its discretion by failing to order a new trial after an improper jury argument by plaintiffs\u2019 counsel. Specifically, defendants assert that plaintiffs\u2019 counsel told the jury that Aon was one of the largest insurance brokers in the world with offices in Chicago and that they would pay any judgment in favor of plaintiffs. Although the trial court sustained defendants\u2019 objection and instructed the jury to disregard the argument, defendants argue that since the jury awarded damages, the improper argument can be presumed to have prejudiced the deliberations.\nIn the case of Fidelity Bank v. Garner, 52 N.C. App. 60, 277 S.E.2d 811 (1981), plaintiff\u2019s counsel improperly referred to matters outside the record in his closing remarks to the jury that were potentially prejudicial. Defendant made a motion to strike the statement, which was allowed, and the judge instructed the jury that the argument was improper and therefore should be disregarded. In denying plaintiff\u2019s motion for a mistrial, this Court stated that while:\n[P]laintiffs counsel should not have made such a remark . . . the record indicates that upon hearing the remark the court took the necessary steps to correct the impropriety. When a jury is instructed to disregard improperly admitted testimony, the presumption is that it will disregard the testimony.\nFidelity Bank at 65, 277 S.E.2d at 814.\nIn the case at bar, defendants immediately objected to the statements about Aon by plaintiffs\u2019 counsel. Their objection was sustained and curative instructions were given to the jury. Thus, the presumption is that the jury acted properly and disregarded the statements of plaintiffs\u2019 counsel. As a result, we find the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying defendants\u2019 motion for a new trial.\nThe plaintiffs assign as error the trial court\u2019s dismissal of their claim of unfair and deceptive trade practices on two grounds. First, plaintiffs rely on this Court\u2019s holding in Forbes v. Par Ten Group, Inc., 99 N.C. App. 587, 394 S.E.2d 643 (1990), rev. denied, 328 N.C. 89, 402 S.E.2d 824 (1991), to establish that defendants\u2019 conduct amounted to an unfair and deceptive trade practice. In order to prove an unfair and deceptive trade practice, plaintiffs must show that defendants engaged in \u201cunfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce.\u201d N.C. Gen. Stat. \u00a7 75-1.1 (1999). Plaintiffs cite Forbes in support of the proposition that defendants\u2019 misrepresentations are not exempt from Chapter 75 merely because they were made \u201cnegligently and in good faith, in ignorance of their falsity, and without intent to mislead.\u201d Forbes at 601, 394 S.E.2d at 651.\nIn Forbes, the plaintiffs were purchasers of lots and memberships in a resort community. They brought suit against the community\u2019s developers, sales agents, and brokerage firm for fraudulently transferring the plaintiffs\u2019 property deposits into the developer\u2019s private checking account in order to pay his salary. In reversing the trial court\u2019s grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendant, this Court stated:\n[w]hether a trade practice is unfair or deceptive usually depends upon the facts of each case and the impact the practice has in the marketplace. A practice is unfair when it offends established public policy as well as when the practice is immoral, unethical, oppressive, unscrupulous, or substantially injurious to consumers . . . [i]n essence, a party is guilty of an unfair act or practice when it engages in conduct which amounts to an inequitable assertion of its power or position.\nForbes at 600, 394 S.E.2d at 650.\nWe find the facts here distinguishable from Forbes. Defendants\u2019 actions purported to expand plaintiffs\u2019 existing insurance policy to cover inventory that was uninsurable under the policy. Defendants stood to gain very little from their misleading conduct which was limited to these plaintiffs. We cannot characterize defendants\u2019 actions as \u201cimmoral, unethical, oppressive, unscrupulous, or substantially injurious to consumers.\u201d Id. Furthermore, the effect of defendants\u2019 actions in the marketplace would be negligible.\nIn addition, N.C. Gen. Stat. \u00a7 58-63-15(l)(1999) defines unfair methods of competition and deceptive acts or practices in the business of insurance. Since the flood insurance sought by plaintiffs was not available among competing insurers, no unfair advantage was to be gained from defendants\u2019 actions. Based on the foregoing reasons, we find no error in the trial.\nNo error.\nJudges LEWIS and HUNTER concur.", "type": "majority", "author": "WALKER, Judge." } ], "attorneys": [ "Moore & Brown, by B. Ervin Brown, II and James S. Gibbs, Jr., for plaintiffs.", "Everett, Gaskins, Hancock & Stevens LLP, by Hugh Stevens, Paul C. Ridgeway, and K. Matthew Vaughn, for defendants." ], "corrections": "", "head_matter": "WILLIAM C. ERLER, d/b/a WEST END OFFICE BUILDING and HUNTER TEXTBOOKS, INC., Plaintiffs v. AON RISKS SERVICES, INC. OF THE CAROLINAS (formerly Rollins, Hudig Hall of the Carolinas, Inc.) and SUSAN COTHREN, Defendants\nNo. COA99-1274\n(Filed 29 December 2000)\n1. Collateral Estoppel and Res Judicata\u2014 claim preclusion\u2014 rights and interests do not rise to level of similarity necessary\nPlaintiff insured is not barred by claim preclusion from bringing suit against defendants for coverage provided under a flood insurance policy merely based on the fact that plaintiffs previous suit in federal court was voluntarily dismissed, because the rights and interests of the parties in this case do not rise to the level of similarity necessary when plaintiffs claim in the federal action was dependent on the lower floor being classified as other than a basement, whereas in the present action plaintiff concedes that the lower floor should have been classified as a \u201cbasement,\u201d but that the flood insurance agent misrepresented that it was not a \u201cbasement.\u201d\n2. Evidence\u2014 insurance policy coverage \u2014 stipulations\u2014 existence of policy\nPlaintiff is not barred from introducing evidence that the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policy did not provide coverage for the contents located on the lower floor of the pertinent building even though plaintiff stipulated to the validity of the NFIP policy in the pretrial order, because the stipulations only establish the existence of the policy at the time of the loss.\n3. Insurance\u2014 negligent misrepresentation \u2014 requested instruction \u2014 expert testimony \u2014 definition of \u201cbasement\u201d\nThe trial court did not err in an action arising out of an insurance agent\u2019s alleged negligent misrepresentation by denying defendants\u2019 request for an instruction that the determination of whether the lower floor is a \u201cbasement\u201d required the flood insurance agent to exercise specialized knowledge of the National Flood Insurance Program\u2019s complex definition and thus required expert testimony to establish the standard of care, because the issue is one that the jury would be able to decide based on common knowledge and experience.\n4. Damages and Remedies\u2014 method of calculation \u2014 \u201cperpetual inventory\u201d\nThe trial court did not err in an action to recover proceeds from a flood insurance policy by concluding that the evidence of damages presented by plaintiff\u2019s method for counting the damaged inventory was sufficient to support the jury\u2019s verdict, because the evidence was not so speculative as to be inadmissible when there was evidence of plaintiff\u2019s damages based on \u201cperpetual inventory\u201d and also evidence that the loss calculation should have been based on an actual count.\n5. Negligence\u2014 contributory \u2014 issue properly submitted to jury\nThe trial court did not err in an action to recover proceeds from a flood insurance policy by concluding that the evidence does not establish plaintiff\u2019s contributory negligence as a matter of law and that the issue was properly submitted to the jury.\n6. Trials\u2014 improper mention of insurance \u2014 objection sustained \u2014 curative instruction \u2014 jury presumed to act properly\nThe trial court did not abuse its discretion by failing to order a new trial after plaintiff\u2019s counsel told the jury that defendant was one of the largest insurance brokers in the world with offices in Chicago and that it would pay any judgment in favor of plaintiff, because: (1) the trial court sustained defendants\u2019 objection and instructed the jury to disregard the argument; and (2) the jury is presumed to have acted properly and disregarded the statements.\n7. Unfair Trade Practices\u2014 insurance \u2014 motion to dismiss properly granted\nThe trial court did not err by dismissing plaintiff\u2019s claim of unfair and deceptive trade practices under N.C.G.S. \u00a7\u00a7 75-1.1 and 58-63-15(1) based on defendants\u2019 actions which purported to expand plaintiff\u2019s existing insurance policy to cover inventory that was uninsurable under the policy, because: (1) defendants stood to gain very little from their misleading conduct which was limited to this plaintiff; (2) defendants\u2019 actions cannot be characterized as immoral, unethical, oppressive, unscrupulous, or substantially injurious to consumers; (3) the effect of defendants\u2019 actions in the marketplace would be negligible; and (4) no unfair advantage was to be gained from defendants\u2019 actions since the flood insurance sought by plaintiffs was not available among competing insurers.\nAppeal by plaintiffs and defendants from judgment entered 27 April 1999 by Judge William H. Freeman in Forsyth County Superior Court. Heard in the Court of Appeals 12 September 2000.\nMoore & Brown, by B. Ervin Brown, II and James S. Gibbs, Jr., for plaintiffs.\nEverett, Gaskins, Hancock & Stevens LLP, by Hugh Stevens, Paul C. Ridgeway, and K. Matthew Vaughn, for defendants." }, "file_name": "0312-01", "first_page_order": 342, "last_page_order": 351 }