You are here: / / Damage to Building Caused by Silica Dust Excluded from Coverage Under “Pollutants”...

Damage to Building Caused by Silica Dust Excluded from Coverage Under “Pollutants” and “Faulty Workmanship” Policy Exclusions

The Third Department determined the insurer was entitled to summary judgment based upon the exclusions of coverage in the policy. The insured sought coverage of damage caused by silica dust disbursed throughout the insured’s building.  The Third Department held that the “pollutants” and “faulty workmanship” exclusions in the policy precluded coverage, and the “ensuing loss exception” did not apply:

“[A]n insurer seeking to invoke a policy exclusion ‘must establish that the exclusion is stated in clear and unmistakable language, is subject to no other reasonable interpretation, and applies in the particular case'” … . To determine whether a policy provision is ambiguous, courts are guided by “the reasonable expectations of the average insured upon reading the policy” … . The meaning of any part of such a policy must be determined upon consideration of the policy as a whole … . In addition, “[a]n insurance contract should not be read so that some provisions are rendered meaningless” … . Upon applying these rules of construction, if “an insurance policy’s meaning is not clear or is subject to different reasonable interpretations,” such an ambiguity must be resolved in favor of the insured … . Because we find that both policy exclusions apply to bar coverage here, we grant defendants’ motion and dismiss the complaint.

Defendants were entitled to summary judgment based on the pollution exclusion clause. Pursuant to that exclusion in the policy, defendants will not cover loss resulting from the “[d]ischarge, dispersal, seepage, migration, release or escape of ‘pollutants.'” As defined in the policy, “‘[p]ollutants’ means any solid, liquid, gaseous or thermal irritant or contaminant, including smoke, vapor, soot, fumes, acids, alkalis, chemicals, waste and any unhealthy or hazardous building materials (including but not limited to asbestos and lead products or materials containing lead).” The record contains unrebutted evidence that silica dust can cause lung disease and respiratory problems, placing such dust within the policy definition of a pollutant as “unhealthy or hazardous building material[],” as well as a “solid . . . irritant or contaminant” … . Broome County v The Travelers Indem Co, 2015 NY Slip Op 01697, 3rd Dept 2-26-15

 

You might also like
Prisoner Must Object at Hearing to Obtain Judicial Review
CLAIMANT, WHO HAD BEEN INJURED, DID NOT DEMONSTRATE SHE WAS ABLE TO WORK DURING THE TIME SHE WAS CERTIFIED FOR BENEFITS, UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE APPEALS BOARD RULING SHE WAS ENTITLED TO BENEFITS REVERSED (THIRD DEPT).
Town Did Not Follow Its Own Procedures for Rescinding a Planned Development District–Local Law Purporting to Do So Annulled
Workers’ Compensation Board’s Recovery of a Portion of Benefits Paid by the Board to an Injured Employee from the Special Disability Fund Did Not Operate to Satisfy the Board’s Judgment Against the Employer Re: those Benefits (Which the Employer Failed to Pay)
QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT WHETHER DECEDENT’S WIFE IS A BORROWER WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE REVERSE MORTGAGE DOCUMENTS PRECLUDES SUMMARY JUDGMENT, IF DECEDENT’S WIFE IS A BORROWER SHE MAY REMAIN IN THE MORTGAGED PREMISES, IF NOT, FORECLOSURE CAN PROCEED.
FATHER SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN SENTENCED TO JAIL FOR NONPAYMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT BECAUSE HE HAD PAID THE ARREARS BEFORE THE ORDER OF COMMITMENT WAS ISSUED (THIRD DEPT).
Approval of an MRI Within Seven Years of Closure of Claimant’s Case Effectively Reopened the Case—Transfer to the Special Fund for Closed Cases Was Error
IN THIS CPLR ARTICLE 4 PROCEEDING BROUGHT BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, THERE WERE QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT WHETHER THE RESPONDENT NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION VIOLATED ITS FIDUCIARY DUTY AND THE NOT-FOR-PROFIT-CORPORATION LAW WITH RESPECT TO ITS AFFILIATE NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATIONS AND WHETHER THE BUSINESS JUDGMENT RULE APPLIED (THIRD DEPT).

Categories

Sign Up for the Mailing List to Be Notified When the Site Is Updated.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright © 2026 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

Tortious Interference with Contract and Unfair Competition Causes of Action... Rules of Evidence Properly Relaxed to Allow Hearsay In Proceeding to Modify...