State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. Peiffer
Colorado Supreme Court
955 P.2d 1008 (1998)
After Donna Peiffer (plaintiff) was injured in a car accident, her insurer State Farm (defendant) sent her to three independent medical examinations that all concluded her ongoing treatment was unnecessary or unrelated to the accident, leading State Farm to deny further personal injury protection (PIP) benefits despite her own treating providers deeming the treatment necessary; at trial, Peiffer acknowledged under State Farm's hostile-witness examination that she hadn't disclosed prior chiropractic treatment to the examining physicians, and over State Farm's objection, the court gave a 'thin skull' instruction barring the jury from reducing damages based on any pre-existing frailty. The jury found for Peiffer on both breach-of-contract and bad-faith claims, the court of appeals affirmed, and State Farm sought Colorado Supreme Court review.
Whether a thin skull jury instruction may be given when an insurance company spotlights an insured's pre-existing conditions in order to avoid liability for a breach of contract claim for personal injury protection benefits.