Bridge Repair Damages Excluded as "Inherent Vice"
City of Renton v. Lexington Ins. Co. (USA), 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 69959 (W.D. Wash. September 9, 2007)
In an unpublished decision, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington recently held that even a strictly construed "inherent vice" clause encompassed the error in design of the "Monster Road Bridge" in Renton, Washington where the design error (and not any other event) led to cracks in the girders of the bridge and caused the City's loss for costs of repair. Because the defendant insurers were entitled to summary judgment, the re-insurer defendants were also entitled to judgment as as a matter of law as there was no obligation to “follow the settlement” and reimburse the underlying insurers for payment to the insured.
