Note Arrow International Ltd v QBE Insurance (International) Ltd

Note Arrow International Ltd sought to appeal against a decision of the Court of Appeal which had dismissed its claim for indemnity from QBE Insurance (International) Ltd. The issue before the Supreme Court was whether the appeal should be allowed. The dispute arose from water ingress into a building during the currency of an insurance policy. The policy provided indemnity for damage by water, but only if the damage occurred "during the period of insurance". The Court of Appeal had ruled that the water ingress had not occurred "during the period of insurance" and therefore QBE was not liable. The legal issues before the Supreme Court were whether the policy was to be construed contra proferentem and whether the water ingress had occurred "during the period of insurance".

The Supreme Court held that the appeal should be dismissed. It found that the policy was not to be construed contra proferentem, as that principle did not apply to the construction of insurance policies. The Court held that the water ingress had not occurred "during the period of insurance" because it was a gradual process which began before the policy period and continued afterwards. The Court found that the water ingress constituted a series of separate events, rather than a single continuous event, and therefore the damage did not occur "during the period of insurance" as required by the policy. The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal.