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ALTHOUGH THE CONDOMINIUM WAS OCCUPIED BY PLAINTIFFS’ DAUGHTER WHEN THE PIPE BROKE, THE INSURER WAS ENTITLED TO RESCIND THE POLICY BECAUSE THE PLAINTIFFS REPRESENTED THE CONDOMINIUM WOULD BE OCCUPIED BY THEM (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department determined the defendant insurer was entitled to rescind the insurance policy because of a material misrepresentation, even if the misrepresentation was innocent or unintentional. Plaintiffs represented to the insurer that the condominium would be occupied by them and that they had no other residences. However, plaintiffs never lived in the condominium, which was occupied by plaintiffs’ daughter. The condominium was damaged when a water pipe broke:

“To establish the right to rescind an insurance policy, an insurer must show that its insured made a material misrepresentation of fact when he or she secured the policy” … . “A representation is a statement as to past or present fact, made to the insurer by, or by the authority of, the applicant for insurance or the prospective insured, at or before the making of the insurance contract as an inducement to the making thereof” … . “A misrepresentation is material if the insurer would not have issued the policy had it known the facts misrepresented”… . “To establish materiality as a matter of law, the insurer must present documentation concerning its underwriting practices, such as underwriting manuals, bulletins, or rules pertaining to similar risks, that show that it would not have issued the same policy if the correct information had been disclosed in the application” … .

Otsego Mutual established its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law by submitting evidence demonstrating that the plaintiffs’ application for insurance contained a material misrepresentation regarding whether the townhouse would be owner-occupied and that it would not have issued the subject policy if the application had disclosed that the townhouse would not be owner-occupied … .

In opposition, the plaintiffs failed to raise a triable issue of fact. The plaintiffs’ contention that Otsego Mutual was required to establish that their misrepresentation was willful lacks merit. With limited exception not applicable here, “a material misrepresentation, even if innocent or unintentional, is sufficient to warrant rescission of an insurance policy” … . Piller v Otsego Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 2018 NY Slip Op 05615, Second Dept 8-1-18

INSURANCE LAW (ALTHOUGH THE CONDOMINIUM WAS OCCUPIED BY PLAINTIFFS’ DAUGHTER WHEN THE PIPE BROKE, THE INSURER WAS ENTITLED TO RESCIND THE POLICY BECAUSE THE PLAINTIFFS REPRESENTED THE CONDOMINIUM WOULD BE OCCUPIED BY THEM (SECOND DEPT))/CONTRACT LAW (INSURANCE LAW, ALTHOUGH THE CONDOMINIUM WAS OCCUPIED BY PLAINTIFFS’ DAUGHTER WHEN THE PIPE BROKE, THE INSURER WAS ENTITLED TO RESCIND THE POLICY BECAUSE THE PLAINTIFFS REPRESENTED THE CONDOMINIUM WOULD BE OCCUPIED BY THEM (SECOND DEPT))/MISREPRESENTATION (INSURANCE LAW, ALTHOUGH THE CONDOMINIUM WAS OCCUPIED BY PLAINTIFFS’ DAUGHTER WHEN THE PIPE BROKE, THE INSURER WAS ENTITLED TO RESCIND THE POLICY BECAUSE THE PLAINTIFFS REPRESENTED THE CONDOMINIUM WOULD BE OCCUPIED BY THEM (SECOND DEPT))

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