Property Insurance FundamentalsQuestion 228 of 474
Proximate cause, as property insurance uses the term, refers to:
a.The event starting an unbroken chain to the loss
b.The last event occurring just before the damage
c.The person whose carelessness produced the damage
d.The most expensive item of damage that resulted
Explanation
Proximate cause is the peril that sets in motion an unbroken chain of events ending in the loss, and coverage turns on whether that peril is insured. Picking the last event in the sequence would let an uncovered final step defeat coverage the original covered peril triggered. Proximate cause identifies a cause of loss, not a responsible person or the biggest repair item.
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