Bullying Lawsuits Not Covered By Insurance

Two cases recently issued by the Ontario Court of Appeal have found that insurers do not need to defend or indemnify homeowners or their children where the children are faced with bullying accusations.

The companion decisions of Unifund Assurance Company v. D.E. ("Unifund") and C.S. v. TD Home and Auto Insurance Company ("TD Home") overturned the trial court's decisions which found that an exclusion clause in the homeowners' policies was ambiguous, and therefore not applicable. Both decisions involved cases of under-age girls accused of bullying and harassing other children. The victims in these cases sued the children and their parents, alleging that the parents failed to take steps to prevent or remedy the continuous harassment of the victims. The parents argued that their insurer had a duty to defend and indemnify them under their homeowner insurance policies, which included liability coverage if their personal actions caused unintentional bodily injury.