Premises liability 鈥 the importance of clear terms
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia has ruled that Colony Insurance Co. is not liable to indemnify an Atlanta grocery store due to a clear policy exclusion, after a man was shot and killed outside the store in 2019.
The case
In August 2019, Ja鈥橫arcus Holloway was fatally shot outside a Food World store in Atlanta, Georgia. Mr Holloway鈥檚 wife, Stephanie Plummer, brought a claim against the store鈥檚 operator, Henry Properties for negligence and premises liability. Henry Properties notified its insurer, Colony, which filed a motion for a declaration that the liability was excluded under the policy.
Ms Plummer argued that the exclusions were ambiguous and unconscionable as the owners of Henry Properties do not speak English.
The decision
The policy contained exclusions the court described as 鈥渦nambiguous鈥.
The relevant clauses excluded injuries:
鈥渃aused directly or indirectly, by you, any insured, any person, any entity or by any means whatsoever鈥; and injuries that arise,
鈥渃aused directly or indirectly out of the possession, ownership, maintenance, use of or threatened use of a lethal weapon, including but not limited to firearms by any person.鈥
Regarding Ms Plummer鈥檚 second point, the Court explained that under Georgia law 鈥淧arties to a contract are presumed to have read their provisions and to have understood the contents.鈥
Key considerations
This case emphasises the importance of clear policy terms and an insurer鈥檚 responsibility to insureds who may not understand their policy. This judgment is the latest in a slew of high value premises liability suits in the US involving patrons and businesses in high- crime areas.
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