April 27, 2004

A.B. Med. Servs. v Allstate Ins. Co. (2004 NY Slip Op 50373(U))

Headnote

The court considered the fact that plaintiffs were seeking to recover first-party no-fault benefits for chiropractic services they provided to an injured assignor in the sum of $2,603.36. The main issue decided was whether the plaintiffs provided defendant with properly completed claim forms to establish their entitlement to summary judgment. The court held that the affidavit submitted by the plaintiffs' billing manager was insufficient to establish that the claim forms were properly completed, as it did not indicate for which plaintiff she was the billing manager, and thus plaintiffs failed to make out their prima facie entitlement to summary judgment. Therefore, the court affirmed the order denying plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment.

Reported in New York Official Reports at A.B. Med. Servs. v Allstate Ins. Co. (2004 NY Slip Op 50373(U))

A.B. Med. Servs. v Allstate Ins. Co. (2004 NY Slip Op 50373(U)) [*1]

A.B. Med. Servs. v Allstate Ins. Co.

2004 NY Slip Op 50373(U)

Decided on April 27, 2004

Appellate Term, Second Department

Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431.

This opinion is uncorrected and will not be published in the printed Official Reports.

Decided on April 27, 2004

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK

APPELLATE TERM : 2nd and 11th JUDICIAL DISTRICTS

PRESENT:PESCE, P.J., GOLIA and RIOS, JJ.
NO. 2003-899 K C

A.B. MEDICAL SERVICES, PLLC, D.A.V. CHIROPRACTIC P.C., DANIEL KIM’S ACUPUNCTURE, P.C. a/a/o Alexander Lakhtikov, Appellants,
against
ALLSTATE INSURANCE COMPANY, Respondent.

Appeal by plaintiffs from an order of the Civil Court, Kings County (D. Waltrous, J.), entered on April 22, 2003, which denied their motion for summary judgment.

Order unanimously affirmed without costs.

Plaintiffs instituted suit to recover first-party no-fault benefits for chiropractic services they provided to the injured assignor in the sum of $2,603.36. In support of their motion, plaintiffs submitted an affidavit in which Bella Safir states that she is the “practice and billing manager” and “an officer of plaintiff,” even though there are three distinct plaintiffs in this matter. Although A.B. Medical Services, PLLC and D.A,V.
Chiropractic P.C. have the same business address, Daniel Kim’s Acupuncture, P.C. has a different address. The affidavit does not indicate for which plaintiff she is the billing manager, and this court cannot assume that she is acting on behalf of one particular plaintiff, or on behalf of all of the plaintiffs. Consequently, this affidavit is insufficient to establish that plaintiffs provided defendant with properly completed claim forms (A.B. Med. Servs. PLLC v State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., NYLJ, Mar. 18, 2004 [App Term, 9th & 10th Jud Dists]), and thus the court correctly determined that plaintiffs failed to make out their prima facie entitlement to summary judgment.
Decision Date: April 27, 2004