Overview
- The First Petty Bench dismissed Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance's appeal, leaving intact lower court orders to pay roughly ¥22 million.
- Interpreting the policy terms, the court found the claim arises to the insured as compensation for uncovered loss and therefore passes as part of the estate.
- The case involved a man who died in a 2020 single-vehicle crash while covered by a bodily-injury clause, after which his children renounced inheritance.
- The man's mother sued for ¥30 million but died during the lawsuit, and two brothers succeeded the claim, each seeking ¥15 million, with district and high courts ruling for them in 2023.
- Mitsui Sumitomo said it accepts the decision, and observers note similar clauses across non-life insurers could lead to changes in how such claims are assessed and paid.