A cupcake business sued its broker for failing to obtain insurance coverage to protect the company against all claims, which included a sexual harassment lawsuit in Big Man Bakes v. Stephen Hoskins.
William Brown and his business partner, Claudine Grier, founded Big Man Bakes in Los Angeles. In June 2009, Grier contacted USI of Southern California Insurance Services and was referred to broker Steven Hoskins. Grier asked for basic coverage for the business, which rented a small retail space and commercial kitchen and had no employees. Grier requested a quote for business property and liability coverage and said she wanted to keep insurance costs low while still satisfying the landlord's and statutory insurance requirements.
Hoskins emailed Grier a proposal and she responded by modifying the annual sales projection in order to receive a lower premium. In her emails to Hoskins, Grier referred to the proffered insurance as "business insurance." Hoskins placed the business property and liability insurance with the chosen insurer.
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