Opinion ID: 1938205
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: damage for accident to insured object

Text: Appellant next contends that the trial court should have directed a verdict in its favor under the accident portion of the property policy because appellee failed to sustain its burden of showing that an accident occurred to an insured object. Under this provision the jury awarded $226,200.00 for repair and replacement of the boilers. [6] Appellee, on the other hand, asserts that it established that an accident occurred to an object specifically a boiler, through the testimony of its expert witness, Nick Manfra, the plant manager. In order for there to be coverage under this provision of the contract, the accident must be to an insured object. The policy defines an object as: any boiler, fired vessel or electric steam generator designated and described in the schedule and shall also include (1) any steel economizer used solely with such Object; (2) as respects any such Object which is a steam boiler, any piping on the premises of the insured, or between parts of said premises, with valves, fittings, traps and separators thereon, which contain steam or condensate thereof, generated in whole or in part in such boiler but not including any such piping which forms a part of any other vessel or apparatus; and (3) respects any such Object which is a steam boiler, any feed water piping between such boiler and its feed pump or injector; but Object shall not include (a) any part of such Object which does not contain steam or water; (b) any boiler setting; (c) any insulating or refractory materials; (d) any piping which does not contain steam or condensate thereof; (e) any piping not on the premises of the insured, used to supply any premises not owned by, leased by or operated under the control of the insured; (f) any other piping, radiator, coil, vessel or apparatus except as included in sections (1), (2), and (3) above; (g) any reciprocating or rotating machine; nor (h) any electrical apparatus. See Property Damage Policy at Boiler and Machinery Definitions Special Provisions at 1 (R.R. at 50A). The policy then defines an accident as: a sudden and accidental breakdown of the object, or a part thereof, which manifests itself at the time of its occurrence by physical damage to the Object that necessitates repair or replacement of the Object or a part thereof; but Accident shall not mean (a) depletion, deterioration, corrosion, or erosion of material; (b) wear and Tear; (c) leakage at any valve, fitting shaft, seal, gland packing, joint or connection; (d) the breakdown of any vacuum tube, gas tube or brush; (e) the breakdown of any electronic computer or electronic data processing equipment; (f) the breakdown of any structure or foundation supporting the Object or any part thereof; (g) an explosion of gas or unconsumed fuel within the furnace of any object or within the passages from the furnace of said object to the atmosphere; nor (h) the functioning of any safety device or protective device. Id. Manfra's testimony was the only testimony introduced to prove that there was an accident to an object. Appellee cites to a portion of Manfra's testimony where he stated that, in his opinion, water from the water main break caused damage to the boilers. See N.T. November 18, 1985 at 2.60. Manfra, however could not specify the nature of the damage. Thus, when questioned about what was damaged, Manfra testified, I would guess it (damage) would be internal. Id. at 2.71 (emphasis supplied). He further testified that he had hoped that someone would come in and examine the situation and tell him what had happened because he did not have the type of equipment to detect it. See id. at 2.71-72. Later on Manfra again admitted that he could not tell what happened, and did not know specifically what was wrong with the boilers. Indeed, he stated that the problem could be damage to the boiler or to anything connected with the boiler, including the shell, control panels, or electrical lines. See id. at 2.74-77, 2.85-86. Despite the fact that Manfra was qualified by appellee and the court as an expert, he candidly expressed his inability to pinpoint what went wrong. For example, when counsel questioned Manfra about whether the damage occurred to the boilers or to the refractories (which were excluded from coverage), the following exchange occurred: Q [appellant's counsel]: . . ., do you attribute those problems to the mechanical works of the boilers rather than problems to the refractories? A [Manfra]: We never got the same intensity of heat out of the boiler again. I'm not a boiler mechanic. I can't tell you what happened. Something happened to it. Q: But you don't know what? A: No, I don't. You know there's something wrong when you're burning more gas and producing less steam. Q: Did that have something to do with the brick? A: Could be the refractories, boilers. Q: Could be anything? A: Anything connected with the boiler. Id. at 2.89-90 (emphasis supplied). Moreover, Manfra never had anyone come in and assist him in identifying the problem. See id. at 2.71, 2.75, 2.77. In addition to Manfra's inability to offer an opinion on the nature of the damage, there is no question that Manfra never stated that he believed to a reasonable degree of certainty or that in his professional opinion there was an accident to the boiler. Instead, Manfra's testimony unequivocally establishes that he had neither the equipment nor the expertise (I'm not a boiler mechanic) to form an opinion on the nature of the damages. In short, the jury was left to speculate with regard to both (1) whether the damage occurred to the boiler itself or another part of the structure, and (2) the nature of the damage. It is settled that, to be competent, expert testimony must be stated with reasonable certainty. See McMahon v. Young, 442 Pa. 484, 276 A.2d 534 (1971); see also McCann v. Amy Joy Donut Shops, 325 Pa.Super. 340, 472 A.2d 1149 (1984). Here, Manfra's failure to state an opinion with such certainty need not be fatal if we could look to his testimony in its entirety and find that it expresses reasonable certainty. See McCann v. Amy Joy Donut Shops, supra (citing Hussey v. May Department Stores, Inc., 238 Pa.Super. 431, 357 A.2d 635 (1976)). However, that does not appear possible in this case. Although Manfra offered a general opinion that the boilers had been damaged, his testimony unequivocally established that he never examined the boilers to determine what the problem was nor did he call in anyone else to examine the boilers. In addition, he admitted that he could not determine whether the damage was to the boilers or to something connected with them. As our Supreme Court stated in Smail v. Flock, 407 Pa. 148, 180 A.2d 59 (1962), it is not enough to say that something could have happened. Anybody can guess. Id., 407 Pa. at 152, 180 A.2d at 61. On this record, appellee's only evidence on supposed damage to an insured object (the boilers) amounted to an unfounded guess. [7] Because appellee did not produce sufficient evidence to create a jury question about whether there was an accident to an insured object, we agree with appellant that the issue should not have been submitted to the jury. Accordingly, we vacate the jury award of $226,200.00.