The Court of Appeal has sided with Asteron Life in a long-running legal battle with Dunedin-based insurance broker Peter Taylor over coverage of an income protection policy.
The court, which released its decision last week, backed the lower court’s decision but reduced the amount Taylor was ordered to pay, Good Returns reported.
According to the report, Taylor purchased an income protection policy from Asteron in 1994, before making a claim in 2010, citing bone cancer and chronic pain. Taylor received payments until September 2014, after which Asteron suspended the benefit, as the insurer was concerned that his income was higher than the policy’s eligibility threshold. The policy was fully cancelled in April 2016.
Taylor, who has since sold his insurance broking business, contested this in High Court, but it sided with Asteron and awarded the insurer $371,286.70. The court noted that Taylor had used his insurance payouts to purchase a holiday home and cars, and to take overseas trips. This meant that Taylor had made false statements about the extent of his income while receiving payments from the insurance.
“[Taylor] has not established that he was 'totally disabled' (as that term was defined in the policy) between September 2014, when Asteron suspended payment, and April 2016, when Asteron cancelled the policy,” the Court of Appeal decision said. “Nor does the evidence establish that Taylor was entitled to any payment during that period even if he were 'totally disabled'.”
The Court of Appeal lowered the amount Taylor owed to Asteron by $51,835.64.
