SOUTHSIDE MOTOR COMPANY, APPELLANT,
v.
TRANSAMERICA INSURANCE COMPANY, A FOREIGN INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Southside Motor Company appeals a dismissal of its insurance claim against Transamerica for employee fidelity bond coverage. The court holds that the fidelity bonds cover losses incurred when an insured settles damages to third parties resulting from employee fraud, reversing the trial court's dismissal.
The court holds that both fidelity policies cover losses incurred in settlement of suits for damages caused by an employee's dishonest or fraudulent acts directed at third persons. The policies are ambiguous regarding what constitutes a 'loss,' and ambiguities in coverage extensions must be construed liberally in favor of the insured.
[1] An insurance policy clause extending coverage must be liberally construed in favor of the insured.
[2] An employee fidelity bond insuring against loss sustained by reason of dishonesty, fraud, or embezzlement covers losses imposed by the creation of liability to third pers…
Previewing 2 of 3 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Because the clause at issue involves extension of coverage rather than exclusion of coverage, it "must be liberally construed in favor of the insured."”
Establishes the interpretive principle that ambiguities in fidelity bond coverage must favor the insured.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceSouthside's employees sold a truck to the Padgetts and created a fraudulent sales contract by making a false financial statement, forging signatures, …
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Ambiguity In Insurance Contracts cases and more on FLexlaw
ERVIN, Judge.
Southside Motor Company appeals the trial court’s Final Order of Dismissal holding that Southside had suffered no “loss” because of fraudulent acts of its employees which were covered by either of two employee fidelity bonds with Transamerica Insurance Company and that the bonds did not define the terms “loss of money, securities and other property” ambiguously. Following the sale of a truck by Southside’s employees to Mr. and Mrs. Padgett, the parties signed an installment sales contract. Later, after Ford Motor Credit Company refused to purchase the contract, the employees made a false financial statement of the Padgetts’ assets and liabilities, forged the Padgetts’ signatures and induced Flagship State Bank of Arlington to purchase it. When Flagship contacted the Padgetts after the latters’ failure to make payments, the forgery was discovered. Southside repurchased the contract and sued the Pad-getts to recover the car or its value. The Padgetts counterclaimed for fraud, and the parties eventually settled, the Padgetts retaining the car and receiving $9,996.63 from Southside. Southside then sued Transamer-ica in this case, alleging that either of two employee fidelity bonds was in effect when Southside repurchased the contract and paid damages to the Padgetts and alleging further that those payments were South-side’s losses which Transamerica was liable for under either of the bonds.
Both of the bonds insure against loss of money, securities or other property sustained by Southside resulting from any fraudulent or dishonest act of Southside’s employees. Neither policy defines “loss.” Both policies define “money” as “currency, coins, bank notes and bullion.” We agree with the appellant that the policy is ambiguous as to what a loss is. Because the clause at issue involves extension of coverage rather than exclusion of coverage, it “must be liberally construed in favor of the insured.” Valdes v. Smalley, 303 So. 2d 342, 344 (Fla. 3d DCA 1974). Transamerica correctly distinguishes cases cited by Southside because none of them involves an insured’s loss caused only by the insured’s liability for damages to third persons as a consequence of its employee’s dishonest acts. See Eglin National Bank v. Home Indemnity Company, 583 F. 2d 1281 (5th Cir. 1978); Imperial Insurance, Inc. v. Employers’ Liability Assurance Corp., 143 U.S.App.D.C. 173, 442 F. 2d 1197 (D.C. Cir. 1970); Levy v. American Mutual Liability Insurance Company, 73 A. 2d 892, 195 Md. 537 (Md.App.1950); Hooker v. New Amsterdam Casualty Company, 33 F.Supp. 672 (W.D.Ky.1940). However, none of the above cases holds that liability under the bonds does not arise with these facts. In Anderson, 13 Couch on Insurance, 2d, § 46:101 (1965), at p. 190, it is said that “a bond insuring against loss sustained by reason of dishonesty, fraud, embezzlement, etc., covers losses imposed by the creation of liability to third persons.” Accord, Citizens’ State Bank v. New Amsterdam Casualty Company, 177 Minn. 65, 224 N.W. 451 (1929); H. S. Equities, Inc. v. Hartford Accident and Indemnity Company, 464 F.Supp. 83 (S.D.N.Y.1978).
We conclude that both policies cover an insured’s losses incurred in settlement of a suit for damages caused by its employee’s dishonest or fraudulent acts directed at third persons. Having decided only that, we reverse and remand this cause for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
SHIVERS and SHAW, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Nat'l Merchandise Co., Inc. v. United Serv. Auto. Ass'n & Jerome C. Cohan & Lyndia Cohan Boyd, 400 So. 2d 526 (Fla. 1st DCA 1981)…would not be covered. In this sense, the terms are “ambiguous,” hence the need for construction or interpretation. Roberson v. United Services Automobile Association, 330 So. 2d 745 (Fla. 1st DCA 1975); Southside Motor Co. v. Transamerica Ins. Co., 380 So. 2d 470 (Fla. 1st DCA 1980); Ellenwood v. Southern United Life Ins. Co., 373 So. 2d 392 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979). The insurer cannot, by failing to define the terms “auto accident” or to include any additional qualifying or exclusionary language, insist upon a…
Authorities Cited
- Valdes v. Smalley, 303 So. 2d 342 (Fla. 3d DCA 1974)
- Imperial Ins. v. The Emp'rs' Liab. Assurance Corp., 442 F.2d 1197 (D.C. Cir. 1970)
- Eglin Nat'l Bank v. The Home Indem. Co., 583 F.2d 1281 (5th Cir. 1978)