McKeesport Machine Co. v. Ben Franklin Insurance

Citations

• 173 Pa. 53
• 34 A. 16
• 1896 Pa. LEXIS 657

Syllabus

<p>Insurance — Fire insurance — Location of moveable property — Construction of policy.</p> <p>As the object of a contract of insurance is indemnity against loss by fire, if the provisions of the contract are susceptible of two or more interpretations, that one should be adopted.that will make the contract effective for the protection of the insured.</p> <p>An insurance company issuing a policy upon a business plant, or any portion of it, is chargeable with knowledge of the customary methods of conducting the business in which the property insured is used.</p> <p>The circumstances surrounding the making of the contract and affecting the subject to which it relates form a sort of context that: may properly be resorted to for aid in determining the meaning of the words and provisions of the contract.</p> <p>A manufacturing plant consisted of two buildings, one a foundry and machine shop, the other a pattern shop. The buildings were close together. The nature of the business required the use of the patterns in the foundry and machine shop only. When they were not in use they were kept in the pattern shop for storage. A policy of insurance on the plant described the property as “ all situate corner of Fourth avenue and Martin street.” The patterns were described in the policy as being in the pattern shop, and in the printed part of the policy there was a statement that the undertaking was to insure the property real and personal described in it “ while located and contained as described herein and not elsewhere.” Some of the patterns which were in use were burnt in a fire which destroyed the machine shop but not the pattern shop. Held, the policy covered the patterns while they were in use in the foundry and machine shop.</p>