Residence Premises Defined?

One of our homeowners insureds (on an HO 00 03 10 00) was in a nursing home for nearly five years prior to her death. Her home was unoccupied, but someone checked on it regularly. Soon after she died, the bank handling her affairs contracted with an antique dealer to conduct a sale of her personal property. During the sale, the dealer left a fan running and a fire started.

We denied the claim, contending that she resided in the nursing home prior to her death, so the policy definition of “residence premises” precluded coverage. The agent feels that the dwelling was still her residence, regardless of how long she was in the nursing home.

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