Travelers Indemnity Co. of America v. Deguise, 180 Vt. 214 (2006)

Citation: Travelers Indemnity Co. of America v. Deguise, 180 Vt. 214 (2006)
Parent Document: Travelers Indemnity Co. of America v. Deguise, 180 Vt. 214 (2006)
Jurisdiction: Vermont (state)
Effective Date: 2006-08-18
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/8209938/travelers-indemnity-co-of-ameri... ↗

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¶ 9. Tenants support their argument by citation to United States Fire Insurance Co. v. Phil-Mar Corp., 139 N.E.2d 330 (Ohio 1956), which, tenants argue, held a lease provision “similar” to the “Hazards” provision in the instant case sufficient to deny an insurer’s subrogation claim. Tenants’ reliance on Phil-Mar is misplaced. While tenants here rely solely upon the “Hazards” provision to bar subrogation, the primary question before the Ohio Supreme Court was whether the surrender clause of a lease, which excepted “loss by fire” from the lessee’s duty to surrender the premises in good condition at the expiration of the lease, included circumstances where the fire loss was due to the lessee’s negligence. Id. at 331. The Phil-Mar court also considered a provision that held the lessee responsible for increased fire insurance premiums if the rate was increased because of the lessee’s occupancy to be indicative of an understanding that the lessor would look to the insurance for compensation. The court viewed that provision, however, in accordance with the lease as a whole — including the fact that the “loss by fire” exception in the surrender clause was “unqualified and unlimited” — to conclude that the purpose of the “loss by fire” exception was to relieve the lessee from its common law liability to the lessor for fire loss. Id. at 333. In contrast, the “Hazards” provision tenants rely on in this case to bar their responsibility for negligently-caused fire damage expressly relieves a tenant from payment of rent when the unit is damaged by fire and cannot be lived in — but only when “the damage is not caused or made worse by the [tenant].” See supra, ¶ 6 n.l. Hence, there is nothing unqualified or unlimited in this lease with regard to when the lessee is relieved from financial responsibility for damages to the leased premises.2

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