{"id":897880,"date":"2020-08-26T15:19:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-26T21:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=897880"},"modified":"2020-08-26T15:19:03","modified_gmt":"2020-08-26T21:19:03","slug":"additional-insured-coverage-exclusion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/","title":{"rendered":"Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Stanley A. Martin | Commonsense Construction Law<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So you think your additional insured<\/a> status as a GC provides protection against claims by your sub\u2019s injured workers? Think again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

General contractors commonly require subs to include the GC as an additional insured party on the sub\u2019s general liability insurance policy. This requirement, coupled with an express indemnity of the sort found in all major industry contract templates, will provide protection for the GC in the event of a claim against the GC by a sub employee that arises out of the sub\u2019s work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But one GC has discovered that some insurance policies include a so-called \u201ccross liability exclusion,\u201d which bars coverage for bodily injury to an \u201cemployee of any insured.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Project and the Lawsuit<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A worker for a scaffolding company was injured when he fell from scaffolding that he was helping to dismantle. The section of scaffolding where he was standing did not have a guard rail, and the worker had not been provided with fall protection. The facts recited all point to control by the sub, and not the GC, over the detail of the operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The injured worker sued the GC, and the GC tendered the defense to the sub\u2019s carrier, based on the GC\u2019s additional insured status and on the subcontract indemnity. Since both scaffolding sub and GC were insured parties, the GC was seeking coverage for a claim ostensibly barred by the cross liability exclusion, and the carrier declined to defend the GC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Court Decision<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Massachusetts Appeals Court has upheld the carrier, denying coverage to the GC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The GC argued that the cross liability exclusion should be read in conjunction with the separation of insureds clause (referred to generically as a \u201cseverability of interests clause\u201d), which states:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Except with respect to the Limits of Insurance, and any rights or duties specifically assigned in this Coverage Part to the first Named Insured, this insurance applies:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. As if each Named Insured were the only Named Insured; and<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Separately to each insured against whom claim is made or ‘suit’ is brought.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The GC noted that the two clauses were inconsistent, and argued that the term \u201cany insured\u201d in the cross liability exclusion is thus ambiguous and should be construed in favor of the GC. But the Appeals Court did not agree. The court noted use of both \u201cthe insured\u201d and \u201cany insured\u201d at different places in the policy, and held that the distinct language should be assumed to be intentional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The court concluded: \u201cThere would thus be \u2018no logical reason why [a severability of interests clause] would operate to limit application of an exclusion whose very purpose is to prevent one insured (or its employee) from suing another insured (or its employee).\u2019\u201d (citations omitted)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Impact of Decision<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Query whether anyone informed the court that a major source of claims to be covered by the additional insured endorsement is the type of claim here \u2013 a sub employee injured while carrying out the sub\u2019s work, who then sues the GC. The court\u2019s comment, noted above, shows a lack of understanding of the very logical reason why GCs would consider the cross liability exclusion to run counter to a major reason for demanding additional insured status.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In any event, this decision is a wake-up call to general contractors. Pay attention to whether the subs\u2019 insurance policies include a cross liability exclusion, which could prevent the GC from requiring subs to defend and indemnify the GC against injured worker claims. And this will be the same issue for owners, relative to GC worker claims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The case is\u00a0Phoenix Baystate Construction v. First Financial Insurance Company<\/em>, 2020 Mass. App. Unpub. LEXIS 411 (May 18, 2020).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Stanley A. Martin | Commonsense Construction Law So you think your additional insured status as a GC provides protection against claims by your sub\u2019s injured workers? Think again. General contractors commonly require subs to include the GC as an additional insured party on the sub\u2019s general liability insurance policy. This requirement, coupled with an express… Continue reading Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9914],"tags":[382,9895,11169,11278,23],"class_list":["post-897880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-insurance-coverage","tag-additional-insured","tag-advise-consult","tag-bodily-injury","tag-cross-liability-exclusion","tag-insurance-coverage","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nInsurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage - Advise & Consult, Inc.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"So you think your additional insured status as a GC provides protection against claims by your sub\u2019s injured workers? Think again\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage - Advise & Consult, Inc.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"So you think your additional insured status as a GC provides protection against claims by your sub\u2019s injured workers? Think again\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Advise & Consult, Inc.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-08-26T21:19:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-08-26T21:19:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@adviseconsult\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@adviseconsult\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7\"},\"headline\":\"Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-08-26T21:19:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-08-26T21:19:03+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/\"},\"wordCount\":619,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Additional Insured\",\"Advise & Consult\",\"Bodily Injury\",\"Cross Liability Exclusion\",\"insurance coverage\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Insurance Coverage\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/\",\"name\":\"Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage - Advise & Consult, Inc.\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2020-08-26T21:19:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-08-26T21:19:03+00:00\",\"description\":\"So you think your additional insured status as a GC provides protection against claims by your sub\u2019s injured workers? Think again\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Advise & Consult, Inc.\",\"description\":\"Construction Expert Witnesses\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Advise & Consult\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png\",\"width\":162,\"height\":75,\"caption\":\"Advise & Consult\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/adviseconsult\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company-beta\/204526\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/MrConstructionExpert\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.expertwitnessinconstruction.com\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage - Advise & Consult, Inc.","description":"So you think your additional insured status as a GC provides protection against claims by your sub\u2019s injured workers? Think again","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage - Advise & Consult, Inc.","og_description":"So you think your additional insured status as a GC provides protection against claims by your sub\u2019s injured workers? Think again","og_url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/","og_site_name":"Advise & Consult, Inc.","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/","article_published_time":"2020-08-26T21:19:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2020-08-26T21:19:03+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@adviseconsult","twitter_site":"@adviseconsult","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7"},"headline":"Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage","datePublished":"2020-08-26T21:19:00+00:00","dateModified":"2020-08-26T21:19:03+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/"},"wordCount":619,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization"},"keywords":["Additional Insured","Advise & Consult","Bodily Injury","Cross Liability Exclusion","insurance coverage"],"articleSection":["Insurance Coverage"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/","name":"Insurance Exclusion Negates Additional Insured Coverage - Advise & Consult, Inc.","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2020-08-26T21:19:00+00:00","dateModified":"2020-08-26T21:19:03+00:00","description":"So you think your additional insured status as a GC provides protection against claims by your sub\u2019s injured workers? Think again","inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/additional-insured-coverage-exclusion\/"]}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/","name":"Advise & Consult, Inc.","description":"Construction Expert Witnesses","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Advise & Consult","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png","width":162,"height":75,"caption":"Advise & Consult"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/","https:\/\/x.com\/adviseconsult","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company-beta\/204526\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/MrConstructionExpert"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.expertwitnessinconstruction.com"]}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2ztG6-3LzW","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/897880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=897880"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/897880\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":897881,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/897880\/revisions\/897881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=897880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=897880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=897880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}