Britannia Hotels sues Aviva for £6.25m over Aberdeen fire losses
Britannia Hotels has filed a £6.25m lawsuit against its insurer, Aviva, over claims it is owed millions as a result of the London insurance firm’s refusal to pay out on a claim for losses caused by a fire at its Aberdeen hotel.
The hotel group has filed a High Court lawsuit against Britain’s largest insurer after Aviva refused to pay for losses related to repair costs and interruption to its business as a result of the 2016 fire, court filing show.
Aviva refused to pay out on the hotelier’s policy in arguing Britannia’s claim was invalidated due to the fire being started by repair works on the Aberdeen hotel’s roof, Law 360 first reported.
Britannia, which operates more than 60 UK hotels, admits the fire was caused by repair works on the Aberdeen hotel’s roof, but says it followed the proper fire safety protocols. The repair works saw workmen use a blowtorch to weld layers of waterproofing on a leaking roof.
The hotelier’s claim says the workmen failed to notice any smoke or flames while on the roof, meaning they would not have been able to put out any fire.
The hotel owner is claiming a total sum of £6.25m – including £2.6m in costs, £1m in repairs, and £3.9m for business interruption losses – after meeting its £1.25m deductible.
Britannia and Aviva have been approached by City PM for comment.