David Wayne Gurien, v. Allstate Insurance Company

In this breach of contract case, David Wayne Gurien (“Plaintiff”) filed suit against Allstate Insurance Company (“Defendant”) for Defendant’s failure to compensate him for the theft of his automobile pursuant to the terms of the insurance contract that he had with the Defendant. The trial court awarded Plaintiff $18,300.00 in compensatory damages and $4,575.00 for the Defendant’s bad faith refusal to pay under the terms of the insurance contract. A motion to alter or amend resulted in an adjustment of compensatory damages to $17,300.00 to account for the deductible. The issues on appeal relate only to the award of the bad faith penalty.