Westchester Fire Insurance v. Foster

Citations

• 90 Ill. 121

Syllabus

<p>1. Parties—who may sue upon policy of insurance. On a policy of insurance issued to A and B against loss by fire, which contains a provision, “ loss, if any, first payable to A as his interest may appear,” where B paid no part of the premium and was not aware the policy had been issued, A may maintain an action in his own name for any loss he may sustain. The person who pays the premium and to whom the loss is payable is the proper party to sue for the loss.</p> <p>2. Insurance—double insurance as avoiding policy. Both the mortgagee and mortgagor have a separate insurable interest, and the fact that the mortgagor has a prior insurance upon his interest will not defeat a policy afterwards takeú on the same property by the mortgagee in the names of both, when the loss is made payable to the mortgagee and the mortgagor is not aware of its issue. To constitute a double insurance the two policies must not only be for the benefit of the same person and on the same subject, but also for the same entire risk.</p> <p>3. Same—clause against use for hazardous business, etc. An occasional occupation of a room of a building insured, by a carpenter in his business, is not ■ such a violation of a clause in á policy which forbids that during the term of insurance, the premises should be used for any trade or business denominated hazardous, as will defeat a recovery in case of loss. An occasional day’s work by a carpenter in a part of the house will not avoid such a policy.</p> <p>4. Same—burning by one not interested in policy. The fact that a person having no interest in a policy of insurance caused the building insured to be burned, without the knowledge or assent of the assured, can not affect the right of the latter to recover for the loss.</p> <p>5. Witness—competency of wife as to declarations of her husband. In an action by a policyholder to recover for a loss by fire, the wife of a third party is not admissible to prove the declarations of her husband which tend to prove