This position should not be accepted.
There is room to interpret the exception that was not defined in the policy in a restrictive manner in a manner consistent with the purpose of the policy (see, for example, Civil Appeal 1446/22, supra), which is the provision of insurance coverage in the event of an insurance event.
If this interpretation had indeed been accepted in the chapter "Building Insurance", together with the definition of sinkhole, it would have led to an illogical definition according to which: there is insurance coverage for any "sudden and unexpected collapse and/or collapse and/or sinking of buildings from massive construction, resulting from the movement of the ground, the subsidence of the land and the sudden and unexpected landslide" (the definition of the section) unless "it was created by the collapse of the upper layer of the soil into a space that opened beneath it" (Ayalon's definition of the exception).
Accepting such an expansive interpretation would lead to the definition of any sinkhole of land sinkhole and the exclusion of almost all insurance cases under the building insurance chapter, which certainly does not meet the purpose of the insurance contract. Especially not in an insurance policy in which we are ordered to interpret exceptions to the policy in a narrow manner (see Civil Appeal 1446/22 above; Civil Appeal 2016/00 above, and others).
It should not be accepted that any subsidence of a road, a sidewalk, or of any soil in which the filler material was filled not as required and was swept away in one way or another below the ground level would be considered sinkhole. As Dr. Yarkoni also testified: "I referred to sinkholes from the geological point of view what is called the most basic truth, because otherwise everything is sinkhole. And it is true that we have adopted in the media, in the press, in this about every sinkhole and everything that happens... (as sinkhole - C.G.P.) ... Do we want to adopt the word sinkhole from the root sinkhole for anything that takes something from point A to point B in the underground? If it is like that in this sense, then everything that is sinkhole will be sinkhole. .. Anything like this would be sinkhole... (Transcript, pp. 37-38). And later on "S. ... I want to read you the definition of the Academy of the Hebrew Language... A sinkhole pit in the ground that was created by the collapse of the upper layer of the ground into a space that opened up beneath it... A. I get it. Do you mean that any collapse of a ceiling in a building into the basement of the building, which is the space now, will become a sinkhole? ... No."
- In light of the aforesaid conclusion, I found that it should not be necessary to address the claims of Media Maven to add the exception only to the policy in 2021, while strictening the terms of the policy, which cancels the exclusion, and to Ayalon's arguments in this regard that this claim is an expansion of a prohibited front.
- In summary, the exception to the policy does not apply. Ayalon must bear the insurance benefits.
In addition, Ayalon Insurance Company will bear legal expenses in the sum of ILS 60,000 (including the cost of the opinion) and attorney's fees in the sum of ILS 60,000 plus VAT, and the balance of the fee. In the circumstances of the case, I found not to charge punitive interest as requested by Media Maven.