Ex Parte Alfa Mutual Insurance Company (in Re: Alfa Mutual Insurance Company v. University of South Alabama D/b/a…

Summary

The court held that damages for impairment of a hospital lien are limited to the loss caused by the impairment, rather than automatically equaling the hospital's entire reasonable charges. Because Alfa's contractual medical-payment obligation was capped at $2,000, any recoverable damages could not exceed that amount, assuming the lien was impaired. The court reversed the judgment insofar as it awarded the full lien amount and remanded for further proceedings; it did not decide whether Alfa's conduct actually impaired the lien.