Opinion
July 10, 1967
Appeal (1) from an order of the Supreme Court entered upon a decision which determined the damages sustained by defendant-respondent Kucskar by reason of the breach by defendant-appellant General Mutual Insurance Company of its obligation under its automobile liability insurance policy issued to him and (2) from the judgment entered upon said order. We had previously affirmed an order which granted summary judgment declaring General liable under said policy to pay to plaintiffs the amounts of their recoveries against Kucskar in certain personal injury negligence actions which General wrongfully refused to defend (see 26 A.D.2d 602, affg. 48 Misc.2d 219); the order thus affirmed providing, among other things, for the taking of proof as to the damages sustained by Kucskar by reason of General's breach of its policy contract. Special Term awarded damages in the amount of the value of the services rendered by Kucskar's attorneys in defense of the negligence actions and for the amount of the value of their services in the declaratory judgment action, and additional damages for Kucskar's "out of pocket expenses and inconvenience during the period he was deprived of his privilege to operate a motor vehicle" and for his "expenses chargeable to efforts to effect restoration of [his] driver's license and registration". It is clear, however, that his recovery must be limited to the amount of the expenses incurred by him in defending the negligence actions. ( Doyle v. Allstate Ins. Co., 1 N.Y.2d 439.) Further, the proof of alleged damage flowing from the revocation of the assured's driver's license and certificate of registration would have to be excluded as speculative and conjectural even if we were free, under the authority cited, to adopt respondent's theory of liability. Judgment and order modified, on the law and the facts, so as to reduce the amount of the award to $500 and, as so modified, affirmed, without costs. Gibson, P.J., Reynolds, Aulisi, Staley, Jr., and Gabrielli, JJ., concur in memorandum Per Curiam.