Unambiguous Medical Expenses Exclusion Did Not Cover Expenses for Bodily Injury to Insured, Excluding Insured’s Claims against Additional Insureds

October 31, 2013 | Insurance Coverage

A federal district court in Indiana has ruled that a medical expenses exclusion in a businessowners liability insurance policy unambiguously excluded coverage of bodily injury to the insured, and that, as a result, claims by the insured against additional insureds under the policy also were excluded. 

The Case

A landscaper contracted with a bank to perform lawn maintenance at various branch locations in Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky. The landscaper claimed that he was injured while working at a branch in Henderson, Kentucky. He sued the bank and its agent.  They sought a defense and indemnity as additional insureds under the businessowners liability insurance policy issued to the landscaper.

The insurer sought a declaratory judgment that it had no duty to defend or indemnify, and it moved for summary judgment.

The Court’s Decision

The court granted the insurer’s motion.

The court found that the endorsement in the policy limited the coverage available to the additional insureds to that for which the landscaper was covered. It then found that the medical expenses exclusion “clearly and unambiguously” stated that the policy did not cover expenses for bodily injury to any insured – including the landscaper. Because the landscaper was not covered, the court concluded that the bank and its agent were not entitled to a defense or indemnification for the underlying claim from the insurer.

The case is State Farm Fire & Cas. Co. v. Vidal, No. 3:12-cv-00181-RLY-WGH (S.D. Ind. Oct. 28, 2013).

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