Insurance – CGL – Construction Contract – ‘Your Work’ Exclusion – Faulty Tape

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Precision Walls, Inc. v. Liberty Mutual Fire insurance Co. (Lawyers Weekly No. 011-084-14, 8 pp.) (Paul Short Jr., J.) Appealed from Greenville County Circuit Court (Letitia Verdin, J.) S.C. App.

Holding: The “your work” exclusion in a commercial general liability policy bars coverage when the tape that a subcontractor used on blue board insulation failed, requiring the removal of a partially completed brick wall, removal of the existing tape, re-sealing, and rebuilding of the brick veneer.

We affirm judgment for the defendant-insurer.

The parties’ CGL policy excluded coverage for property damage to “any property that must be restored, repaired or replaced because ‘your work’ was incorrectly performed on it.” The policy defined “your work” as “(1) Work or operations performed by you or on your behalf; and (2) Materials, parts or equipment furnished in connection with such work or operations.”

The “your work” exclusion specifically includes materials furnished in connection with the subcontractor’s work. The subcontractor’s contract with the general contractor required the subcontractor to “correct the affected work and all costs incurred as the result of [a] breach of warranty….” The defective tape and all costs associated with its replacement fall squarely within the exclusion.

Where the policy terms were not ambiguous, the trial court was not required to construe the terms in favor of the subcontractor. Rather, the trial court appropriately construed the policy terms according to their plain and ordinary meaning.

Affirmed.