CHARLESTON — A couple is suing Nationwide General Insurance Company alleging it failed to uphold its policies.
Aaron Depew and Jeffrey Stephen Young were also named as defendants in the suit.
The residence of Rana B. Short and Christopher E. Crites in Charleston on Feb. 18, was broken into by unknown persons who removed and/or damaged the plaintiffs' personal property, including various tools used in the plaintiffs' business, jewelry, cash, blank checks, the plaintiffs' social security cards, various items of clothing and electronics, according to a complaint filed in Kanawha Circuit Court.
Short and Crites claim at the time of the break-in, they had a personal property insurance policy with Nationwide and the plaintiffs provided a timely notice of claim for insurance benefits due and payable under the Nationwide policy.
Nationwide commenced an investigation into the break-in and loss of personal property and the plaintiffs provided Nationwide with a detailed loss inventory, including photos of many of the items.
Despite having received the detailed listing of the stolen and damaged items, Nationwide requested a sworn proof of loss, which, again, set forth a detailed loss of all the items that were stolen or damaged, according to the suit.
The plaintiffs claim the defendants failed and refused to provide necessary and required first-party assistance to them in connection with the theft claim.
"Despite knowing that the Plaintiffs' theft loss claims were proper and despite the fact that the Plaintiffs fully cooperated with Defendants' investigation into the February 18, 2022, break-in, the Defendants have failed and refused to timely accept the Plaintiffs' claim arising out of the break-in and have failed to pay the benefits due and owing under the Nationwide Policy," the complaint states.
The plaintiffs are seeking compensatory and punitive damages. They are represented by Brent K. Kesner and Ernest G. Hentschel II of Kesner & Kesner in Charleston; and Robert V. Berthold Jr. and Robert V. Berthold III of Berthold Law Office in Charleston.
The case is assigned to Circuit Judge Joanna Tabit.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number: 22-C-484