The issue in this class action is payment of motor vehicles title ad valorem tax (TAVT) by the insurance company when an insured vehicle is declared a total loss. The complaint alleges that this payment is required by the state of Georgia but that USAA Casualty Insurance Company does not pay it. It also claims that this results in an additional underpayment in another provision of Georgia insurance policies.
When a vehicle is in an accident and is declared a total loss, the insurer will pay the owner its actual cash value (ACV). The USAA policy defines this amount as “the amount it would cost, at the time of loss, to buy a comparable vehicle.”
The TAVT replaced the mandatory car sales tax in Georgia in 2013. Along with license plate transfer fees, this is one of the costs that must be paid when someone buys a vehicle, and it’s one of the things that should be included in the ACV, the complaint claims.
The complaint quotes Georgia law as saying that the insurance company “may elect to pay a cash equivalent settlement based upon the actual cost less any deductible provided in the policy, to purchase a comparable automobile by the same manufacturer, same model year, with similar body style, similar options, and mileage, including all applicable taxes, license fees and other fees incident to the transfer of ownership of a comparable automobile.”
At the time of the loss in this case, the TAVT was 7% of the value of the vehicle, as set by the TAVT Manual. The vehicle owned by the plaintiff in this case, Jahazel Black, was valued by USAA at $4,925, meaning the TAVT was $344.75. However, USAA paid only $49.25, the complaint says, and also underpaid the license plate fees.
But that wasn’t all. Black had a Car Replacement Assistance (CRA) endorsement on his policy, and the complaint alleges that USAA caused Black to receive less in the CRA payment.
The complaint alleges that “the Policy requires USAA to including 20% of the ACV, including TAVT, title transfer fees, and license plate transfer fees, as part of CRA coverage. The CRA underpayment was $59.10 (20% of $295.50) for TAVT, and $1 (20% of $5.00) for license plate transfer fees. USAA also failed to account for the $18.00 title transfer fee when calculating CRA, further damaging [Black] by $3.60 (20% of $18.00).”
The class for this action is all insureds under a Georgia private passenger auto policy issued by USAA who, between April 5, 2015 through the date of class certification in this case, had a first-party physical damage claim, adjusted as a total loss, and who received a payment from USAA that did not include the full TAVT or license plate transfer fees due. A subclass has also been proposed of those in the above group who also had CRA with their policy, where the full amount of the fees was not included in the their CRA calculation.
Article Type: LawsuitTopic: Insurance
Most Recent Case Event
USAA Casualty Insurance Inclusions in Total Loss Payments Georgia Complaint
April 5, 2021
The issue in this class action is payment of motor vehicles title ad valorem tax (TAVT) by the insurance company when an insured vehicle is declared a total loss. The complaint alleges that this payment is required by the state of Georgia but that USAA Casualty Insurance Company does not pay it. It also claims that this results in an additional underpayment in another provision of Georgia insurance policies.
USAA Casualty Insurance Inclusions in Total Loss Payments Georgia ComplaintCase Event History
USAA Casualty Insurance Inclusions in Total Loss Payments Georgia Complaint
April 5, 2021
The issue in this class action is payment of motor vehicles title ad valorem tax (TAVT) by the insurance company when an insured vehicle is declared a total loss. The complaint alleges that this payment is required by the state of Georgia but that USAA Casualty Insurance Company does not pay it. It also claims that this results in an additional underpayment in another provision of Georgia insurance policies.
USAA Casualty Insurance Inclusions in Total Loss Payments Georgia Complaint