Various Eateries Trading Limited v Allianz Insurance Plc
Decision date: 16 January 2024
Neutral citation: [2024] EWCA Civ 10
Court: Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
Insurance classification confidence: high
Overall AI summary confidence: medium
Short overview
A short description of the case, material issue, and outcome where supported by the judgment.
AI confidence in this overview: medium
This appeal concerned whether Various Eateries' business-interruption losses from Covid-19 could be aggregated as arising from a single occurrence (the Wuhan outbreak) and whether insured "Covered Events" occurring during the policy Period of Insurance could give rise to recoverable losses extending beyond that period. The judge rejected Allianz's aggregation argument that the Wuhan introduction was the relevant single occurrence as too remote, treated certain UK government measures (16 March closure instructions, 20 March enforced closures, and restrictions from 24 September 2020) as relevant single occurrences, and held that a Covered Event during the Period of Insurance may give rise to Business Interruption Loss continuing beyond the Period of Insurance subject to the Maximum Indemnity Period. The Court of Appeal agreed with and dismissed the insurer's appeal and the insured's cross-appeal on the issues recorded.
Ratio decidendi
The legal reasoning necessary to the outcome, where it can safely be identified from the judgment.
AI confidence in this ratio summary: medium
The policy should be construed so that a Prevention of Access or enforced closure occurring during the Period of Insurance is a Covered Event which can give rise to Business Interruption Loss continuing after the Period of Insurance, limited only by the policy's Maximum Indemnity Period; and, on the facts, the initial Wuhan infections were too remote to be the relevant single occurrence for aggregation whereas specified UK government measures qualified as relevant occurrences.
Obiter dicta
Judicial observations that were not necessary to the outcome, where they can safely be identified.
AI confidence in this obiter summary: low
No clear obiter dicta can safely be identified from the supplied text.
Warning
The automated summary was prepared from the beginning and end of a long judgment; consult the original decision for the complete reasoning. The middle of the judgment was omitted from the judgment; that omission may omit material reasoning or findings relevant to the issues summarized.