An insured is not entitled to keep all of an advance paid by the insurer when it is subsequently determined that the amount paid was in excess of the loss suffered

11. September 2018 0

Insurance law – Property insurance – Valuation of property – Actual cash value – Duty to indemnify – Appeals

Gore Mutual Insurance Co. v. Carlin, [2018] O.J. No. 3696, 2018 ONCA 628, Ontario Court of Appeal, July 11, 2018, K.N. Feldman, C.W. Hourigan and D.M. Brown JJ.A.

The insurer advanced $750,000 to the insured to rebuild the damaged building while the insurer and insured were still in dispute about the actual cash value of the building. After the appraisal process, it was determined that the actual cash value of the building was less than the advance and that the insurer’s obligation to indemnify was less than the total amount the insurer had advanced to the insured. The Court held that the insured was not entitled to keep the excess amount as to do so would be beyond the scope of the insurer’s obligation to indemnify the insured and would result in the insured being unjustly enriched.

This case was digested by Dionne H. Liu, and first published in the LexisNexis® Harper Grey Insurance Law Netletter and the Harper Grey Insurance Law Newsletter. If you would like to discuss this case further, please contact Dionne H. Liu at dliu@harpergrey.com.