The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has found that the insurer is not obligated to pay claims submitted by a meat retailer that suffered robbery, vandalism, and a fire, due to suspicions of fraud from the insurer. The case is Meat Town Inc. v. Sentinel Insurance Co. No. 19-2351, 2021 U.S. App. LEXIS 9515 (6th Cir. Mar. 30, 2021).

Meat Town, a grocer and butcher, filed claims with Sentinel Insurance Co., a Hartford Unit, for losses that arose from a break-in, robbery, and vandalism that occurred after-hours on November 10, 2015. During this incident, thirteen tons of meat were allegedly stolen. A second incident occurred later, in December 2015, in which the premises were set on fire.

Meat Town never reopened for business after the initial vandalism event and was in the process of being evicted when the arsonist set fire to the building.