Phoenix Ins. Co. of Hartford v. Bourgeois

Citations

• 105 Miss. 698
• 63 So. 212

Syllabus

<p>1. Insurance. Conditions. Keeping boohs of account.</p> <p>Where a fire insurance policy contained what is known as the iron safe clause providing that “the assured will keep a set of hooks, which shall clearly and plainly present a complete record of business transacted, including all purchases, sales, and shipments, both for cash and credit, from date of inventory as provided for in first section of this clause, and during the continuance of this policy,” in case of loss by fire the insured cannot recover, where his books contained no entries for part of the invoices for certain purchases of merchandise, nor for payments of freight and did not show the amount in cash received from cash sales nor the amount collected on credit sales and there was no record of the groceries and other mer- ■ chandise taken for the support of insured’s family or to maintain his horse and delivery wagon and his cashbook was kept in pencil, and contained erasures and alterations, some of which were made after the fire, since his loss could not be arrived at with any degree of certainty from -his books.</p> <p>2. Same.</p> <p>While such iron safe clause will not be literally or technically construed still the books must be so kept as that it can be ascertained from them with reasonable certainty, the actual amount of loss by the fire.</p>