Blasiar, Inc. v. Fireman's Fund Insurance

Blasiar, Inc., doing business as Alert Communications (Alert) made a claim against an insurance policy issued by Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company (Fireman’s Fund) for property that Alert believed had been stolen from its warehouse. Fireman’s Fund denied the claim, citing an exclusion for “[property that is missing, but there is no physical evidence to show what happened to it, such as shortage disclosed on taking inventory.”

Alert brought an action against Fireman’s Fund for breach of contract and declaratory relief, arguing that the exclusion is ambiguous and that Alert had presented evidence tending to show that the missing inventory had been stolen. After a court trial, the trial judge concluded that the exclusion is not ambiguous and held that, on the facts presented, Alert’s loss was not covered. The trial court therefore entered judgment for Fireman’s Fund. We agree that the exclusion is not ambiguous and further hold that the trial court’s ruling finding no coverage for the loss is supported by substantial evidence. We therefore affirm the judgment.

Factual and Procedural Background

Alert installs telephone systems for business customers. Alert maintained a…