Ontario Court of Appeal upholds decision that insurer did not establish, on a balance of probabilities, that insured made material and fraudulent misrepresentations on application for insurance and therefore insured’s life insurance policy was valid

14. March 2023 0
Insurance law – Life insurance – Misrepresentation in obtaining insurance – Fraud – Criminal offences – Duties and liabilities of insured – Policies and insurance contracts – void Ab Initio – Practice – Leave to appeal Costanza (Litigation guardian of) v. Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Co., [2023] O.J. No. 373, 2023 ONCA 54, Ontario ...

What you don’t know can hurt you: an exclusion clause for failure to prevent an assault may exclude coverage for negligently failing to prevent assault without having any direct knowledge the assault was going to occur

14. February 2023 0
Insurance law – Homeowner’s insurance – Duty to defend – Interpretation of policy – Exclusions – Assault – Failure to supervise – Practice – Summary judgments Reeves v. Co-Operators General Insurance Co., [2022] B.C.J. No. 2499, 2022 BCSC 2258, British Columbia Supreme Court, December 23, 2022, C.L. Forth J. The insureds’ son, Isaac, was alleged ...

Once and for all: a definition for a term that appears in an insurance policy applies to the same term appearing in an excess endorsement unless the endorsement explicitly modifies the definition

14. February 2023 0
Insurance law – Automobile insurance – Homeowner’s insurance – Accident – Definition – Ownership, use or operation of motor vehicle – Use of vehicle – Uninsured or underinsured motorist – Interpretation of policy Smith v. Taylor, [2022] O.J. No. 5436, 2022 ONSC 6889, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, December 8, 2022, M.J. Valente J. The ...

Dirt biker entitled to accident benefits from auto insurer where bike is not exempt from insurance requirements

10. January 2023 0
Insurance law – Automobile insurance – Automobile, definition – Statutory provisions [interpretation] – Appeals Beaudin v. Travelers Insurance Co. of Canada, [2022] O.J. No. 5102, 2022 ONCA 806, Ontario Court of Appeal, November 23, 2022, E.E. Gillese, B. Miller and S.A. Coroza JJ.A. The insured was riding a dirt bike in a closed course competition ...

No coverage for claim that was reasonably foreseeable prior to inception of claims made policy

10. January 2023 0
Insurance law – Liability insurance – Wrongful acts – Exclusions – Occurrence vs. claims-based policy Colliers International Group Inc. v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Co., [2022] O.J. No. 4801, 2022 ONSC 6184, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, November 1, 2022, F.L. Myers J. The insured sought indemnity under a claims made professional liability policy. The insurer ...

Coverage down the toilet due to vacancy

10. January 2023 0
Insurance law – Homeowner’s insurance – Exclusions – Water damage – Interpretation of policy – Practice – Summary judgments Morgan v. Co-operators General Insurance Co., [2022] O.J. No. 5674, 2022 ONSC 7254, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, December 21, 2022, MacNeil J. The insured sought coverage for water damage to his townhouse under his home ...

Seven years too late for coverage

10. January 2023 0
Insurance law – Homeowner’s insurance – Delay – Relief against forfeiture – Duties and liabilities of insured Searles v. Economical Insurance, [2022] O.J. No. 5784, 2022 ONSC 7217, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, December 29, 2022, The Honourable Mr. Justice Pierre E. Roger The insureds purchased a home insurance policy, which was in force when ...

Family of victim of accidental military activity recovers from insurers

13. December 2022 0
Insurance law – Accident and sickness insurance – Death benefits – Exclusions – Interpretation of policy – Practice – Summary judgments Arbabbahrami Estate V. MSH International (Canada) Ltd., [2022] O.J. No. 4535, 2022 ONSC 5723, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, October 11, 2022, R. Centa J. The Court held that the deceased insured’s estate was ...

It’s too soon!

13. December 2022 0
Insurance law – Property insurance – Duty to defend – Exclusions – Extrinsic evidence – Practice – Appeals AIG Insurance Co. of Canada v. Lloyd’s Underwriters, [2022] O.J. No. 4509, 2022 ONCA 699, Ontario Court of Appeal, October 14, 2022, E.E. Gillese, G. Huscroft and L. Sossin JJ.A. The Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the ...