DANNY PRAISE COMPUTERS v. SIC INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED
2016
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
- ANGELINA MENSAH-HOMIAH (MRS.) JUSTICE OF THE HIGH COURT
Areas of Law
- Contract Law
- Insurance Law
2016
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
In a case involving a burglary insurance policy, the plaintiff, a Ghanaian company, sought compensation from the defendant insurer for items stolen from its Accra premises. The defendant repudiated the claim citing breach of a watchman's warranty, which required continuous presence of a watchman when the premises were closed. The court concluded that the warranty was a condition precedent to the insurer's liability. Consequently, the breach allowed the insurer to repudiate the claim legally. The court further referenced multiple insurance law principles and past judgments to substantiate its findings.
JUDGMENT
In this judgment, the court will among other things consider the nature and legal effect of warranties and conditions in Insurance Contracts as opposed to General Contracts. This case arose from a misunderstanding and/ or misinterpretation of certain conditions and endorsements in a burglary insurance policy as a result of which the insurer has repudiated the claim. To begin with, I will like to draw the attention of the disputants to a constructive observation made by the Supreme Court, speaking through Apaloo C.J. in GHANA UNION ASSURANCE CO., LTD. v. ASSAD FAKHRY AND SONS [1981] GLR 634. Perhaps, this statement will prepare the parties to better appreciate their respective positions right from the onset. His Lordship stated:
"There is one observation we feel obliged to make. Formal written contracts of insurance with their numerous conditions and endorsements are highly technical legal documents hardly comprehensible to a layman. Experience shows that the policies are normally received after agreement has been reached, premium paid and after the insurance has validly come into operation. Often, the insured do not trouble to read the actual policies when they eventually arrive. For this reason, it is necessary that the stronger of the contracting parties, i.e. the insurance companies should ensure that the actual policy conforms with what the insured was led to believe. Otherwise, these policies will be no more than pitfalls for the unwary"
To what extent is the above observation relevant to the facts of the case at hand? As the story unfolds, the court will make definitive findings of fact based on the evidence adduced, apply the law and appropriate principles of insurance and draw its conclusions.
The plaintiff describes itself as a limited liability company with branches in all the regions of Ghana. The plaintiff took a burglary policy with the defendant, a reputable insurance company in Ghana, in respect of five business premises in Accra and Kumasi. These policies were taken at the defendant's Kumasi office, renewed annually and all premiums were duly paid.
Its premises at Forico Shopping Mall, Osu, Accra was burgled about midnight, on or about 29/12/2013 and 30/12/2013 and numerous items as per the schedule attached to the writ of summons were stolen by the burglars. The plaintiff alleged that its night watchman was only absent from post for one night on grounds of ill-health without notice to the plaintiff company. The burglary occ