A Marine, who is on his third tour in Iraq, was awarded $3.5 million in punitive damages last month in his lawsuit against USAA, a servicemembers’ insurance company. The claim had been for water damage to his house. Capt. John Colombero already had won $50,000 in damages for emotional distress in the first phase of the trial. His lawyers contended that he spent time between deployments arguing with his insurance company. USAA had denied a 2004 claim for $84,744 in damage to the Marine’s house. Jurors indicated on the verdict form that the punitive award was intended to punish USAA for malice, oppression and fraudulent conduct.

USAA, a private company based in San Antonio, Texas, provides insurance and financial services to 5.6 million servicemembers and their families. Capt. Colombero bought his three-bedroom house for $352,000 in 2002 and rented out the spare bedrooms to make his payments. In 2004, after he returned from a tour in Baghdad, he decided to build an addition. A pipe burst during construction, damaging the foundation. Since he had been deployed to Iraq on March 20th, Capt. Colombero wasn’t around to hear the jury’s verdict.

Source: Associated Press