The estate of Michael Jackson is suing Lloyd’s of London because the insurer did not pay out on the $17.5 million “This Is It” insurance policy at the time of the singer’s death. Lloyd’s of London is standing by its original decision. This story gets more complex as time goes by.
In 2009, Michael Jackson was scheduled to preform in a series of concerts that would take place at the O2 Arena in London, England. There were 50 concerts scheduled in all, and the whole thing was called the “This is It” Tour.
The purpose of the tour was so that Michael Jackson could make the money he needed to pay off his debts. It was intended to be the last time the singer preformed live, and tickets sold out very quickly.
AEG Live is the name of the company that took out a multimillion dollar insurance policy with Lloyd’s of London on the “This Is It” concerts. It is normal for promotion companies to seek this kind of insurance before a tour starts.
The purpose of the insurance is to cover the costs of cancellation or postponement of the concert series, due to Micheal Jackson having an accident or illness that caused him to be unable to preform. It has been said that this policy was also supposed to provide coverage in case the star died during the “This Is It” tour.
As we all know, Michael Jackson passed away before any of the concerts took place. The cause of his death was from an overdose of the drug Propofol, (which is a powerful anesthetic), that was administered to him by his physician, Dr. Conrad Murray. At this time, the official cause of Mr. Jackson’s death is listed as “homicide”, and Dr. Conrad Murray will be standing trial in September of 2011 on involuntary manslaughter charges.
Lloyd’s of London refused to pay out on the “This Is It” insurance policy for a number of reasons. The insurer says that AEG did not fully disclose Michael Jackson’s medical history, and that the singer did not undergo a required medical examination. Lloyd’s also says that Michael Jackson failed to let them know that he was using Propofol to help cure his insomnia, and that he lied about not having seen a doctor since 2005.
Another reason why Lloyd’s will not pay out on the policy is because it was “restricted to losses resulting from accident only”. Mr. Jackson’s death has been defined as a homicide. That means it was an intentional act, and not an accident.
Michael Jackson’s estate is now suing Lloyd’s of London for failing to pay out on the policy. They are seeking the original $17.5 million as well as an undisclosed amount of “punitive damages”. In their cross complaint, the estate claims that Micheal Jackson never intended to die, so his death still qualifies as an accident. The estate also believes that Lloyd’s of London is “trying to avoid paying a legitimate claim by the insured”.
Image by tleonard1 on Flickr