WEST BEST, INC., D/B/A WEST BEST JEWELRY DISCOUNT OUTLET, APPELLANT,
v.
UNDERWRITERS AT LLOYDS, LONDON, APPELLEE

Fla. 4th DCA | 1995-05-24
No. 94-0433
GLICKSTEIN and STONE JJ., concur., FARMER, J., concurs specially with opinion.
655 So. 2d 1213 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fourth District (1995) Positive Treatment
Cited by 4 cases

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Synopsis

An insurer appealed a summary judgment denying coverage for a lost diamond ring under an all-risks jewelers' block insurance policy. The court reversed, holding that the insurer failed to meet its burden of proving the loss fell within an exclusionary provision for unexplained or mysterious disappearance.


Holding

The court reversed summary judgment, holding that the insurer failed to meet its burden of establishing that the loss fell within the exclusionary provision for unexplained or mysterious disappearance. A genuine issue of material fact exists regarding whether the loss qualifies for the exclusion.


Headnotes

[1] An insurer bears the burden of establishing that the circumstances of a loss fall within an exclusionary provision of an all-risk policy.

[2] An insured is not required to disprove that a loss resulted from an excepted cause under an insurance policy.

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Key Quotes

“Since in the instant case it was undisputed that the loss of the ring apparently fell within the terms of the all-risk policy, appellee bore the burden as insurer to establish that the circumstances of the loss fell within an exclusionary provision.”

Establishes the legal rule that insurers must prove losses fall within exclusions when the loss is otherwise covered.

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Facts & Procedural History

West Best, a family-owned jewelry store, held a diamond ring for repair. When the customer returned nearly a month later, the ring was missing. The ri…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

This is an appeal from a summary final judgment in favor of an insurer against its insured. We reverse and remand for trial as a genuine issue of material fact exists.

Appellant is a family owned jewelry store. Appellee provided an “all-risks” jewelers’ block insurance policy to appellant. A customer left a diamond ring with appellant to be repaired. When she came to pick up the ring almost a month later, appellant discovered that the ring was missing. The customer presented a claim against appellant, who in turn requested that appellee provide coverage and a defense, which it refused to do.

Appellant filed suit against appellee for breach of the insurance contract, alleging that as a consequence of the denial of coverage, appellant was forced to hire a law firm to represent its interests and, in an attempt to mitigate its damages, settle with the customer who lost the ring. Pursuant to the settlement agreement, appellant provided a replacement ring with a comparable fair market value of $17,500.

The deposition of Maria Ursula Fernandez, who works at the store and is the secretary of the corporation, explained that when the repairs were finished on the ring, it was put into an envelope and placed in a “finished box,” which goes into a safe at night. During the day, the finished box was brought out of the safe and set on top of a desk behind the counter. At times, Mrs. Fernandez had seen suppliers, dealers and customers wandering around near the area of the finished box and it made her uncomfortable. She had no explanation to give the customer regarding her missing ring, as there were no break-ins or robberies, nor was there any other missing merchandise, during the time between when the ring was dropped off and when it was discovered as missing.

Appellee does not contest the assertion made by appellant that the trial court also had before it appellant’s answer to appellee’s interrogatory as to how the loss occurred wherein appellant asserted: “[T]he Plaintiff has concluded that Mrs. Hawks’ ring was, in all probability, stolen by one of the suppliers or dealers who roamed in the area where the finished box containing Mrs. Hawks’ ring was located.” Nevertheless, the trial court granted appellee’s motion for summary judgment then entered the summary final judgment being appealed.

Policy exclusion 7(M) reads, in pertinent part, as follows:

7. This Policy insures against all risks of loss of or damage to the above described property arising from any cause whatsoever

EXCEPT:

(M) Unexplained loss, mysterious disappearance or loss or shortage disclosed on taking inventory.

Since in the instant case it was undisputed that the loss of the ring apparently fell within the terms of the all-risk policy, appellee bore the burden as insurer to establish that the circumstances of the loss fell within an exclusionary provision. See Wallach v. Rosenberg, 527 So. 2d 1386, 1388 (Fla. 3d DCA), rev. denied, 536 So. 2d 246 (Fla.1988); Hudson v. Prudential Property & Casualty Ins. Co., 450 So. 2d 565 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984); Phoenix Ins. Co. v. Branch, 234 So. 2d 396, 398-99 (Fla. 4th DCA 1970); see also U.S. Fidelity & Guar. Co. v. J.D. Johnson Co., 438 So. 2d 917, 921 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983). It is not necessary for the insured to disprove that the loss resulted from an excepted cause. Hudson, 450 So. 2d at 568.

In light of the foregoing assertion, appellee — for the purpose of summary judgment — failed to meet its burden. See Jewelers Mut. Ins. Co. v. Balogh, 272 F. 2d 889 (5th Cir.1959); B & S Assocs., Inc. v. Indemnity Casualty & Property, Ltd., (Fla. 4th DCA 1994). 641 So. 2d 436

Appellant further contends that summary judgment in favor of appellee based on exclusion 7(A) was not proper because the record did not establish that an employee took the ring. Appellee does not refute this argument on appeal. We agree with appellant’s position and find that exclusion 7(A) did not provide an alternative basis for summary judgment.

GLICKSTEIN and STONE JJ., concur. FARMER, J., concurs specially with opinion.

Concurrence
FARMER, Judge,

FARMER, Judge,

concurring specially.

In my opinion a reversal of this no-coverage judgment is required also because the exclusion in paragraph 7(M) of the policy applies only to losses from “inventory.” The term “inventory” obviously applies only to goods available for sale. Goods left for repairs are not available for sale. The loss of a ring left for repairs is not from inventory but from something else. I thus agree with the reversal.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Jones v. Federated Nat'l Ins. Co., 235 So. 3d 936 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018)
    …Our allocation of this preliminary burden of proof is consistent with the general notion that an all-risk insurance policy guards against all risks except those explicitly excluded by the policy. See W. Best, Inc. v. Underwriters at Lloyds, London, 655 So. 2d 1213, 1214 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995) (“Since in the instant case it was undisputed that the loss of the ring apparently fell within the terms of the all-risk policy, appellee bore the burden as insurer to establish that the circumstances of the loss fell withi…
  • …So.2d 1082, 1086 (Fla.2005). Once an insured shows a loss occurred to its property while the policy was in force, the burden shifts to the insurer to prove the loss arose from an excluded risk. See West Best v. Underwriters at Lloyds, London, 655 So.2d 1213, 1214 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995); Wallach v. Rosenberg, 527 So.2d 1386, 1388 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988); Hudson v. Prudential Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 450 So.2d 565, 568 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984) citing Jewelers Mutual Ins. Co. v. Balogh, 272 F.2d 889 (5t…

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