Liyanaarachchige Sumathipala vs National Insurance Corporation – C .. A 137/1997-2011

In Liyanaarachchige Sumathipala, proprietor of “Upul Stores”, Kahatagollewa, Kebithigollewa (Plaintiff-Appellant) v. National Insurance Corporation (Defendant-Respondent), the court addressed whether the insurance policy covered losses arising from the Plaintiff’s vehicle being robbed at gunpoint. It was held that the Plaintiff-Appellant had failed to discharge the requisite burden of proof showing the loss arose from an insured risk not excluded by policy exceptions. The principal rule reaffirmed was that in civil cases, the burden rests on the claimant to establish, on a balance of probabilities, that the cause of loss falls within the operative insuring clause and not under any exclusion. Reliance was placed on Section 101 and relevant common law authorities. The decision clarified that