This decision holds that the personal injury coverage for “invasion of right of private occupancy” is ambiguous, as many prior cases have pointed out. Expressly disagreeing with Sterling Builders, Inc. v. United National Ins. Co. (2000) 79 Cal.App.4th 105, this decision holds that the coverage extends to any claim that the insured has interfered with the claimant’s use and enjoyment of his own property, even if the interference does not involve any physical entry or intrusion by the insured onto the claimant’s property. So, in this case, the policy covered the claim that the insured’s building a fence on his own property was a private nuisance because it was within the boundaries of an easement that was the only means of access to the claimant’s adjoining property and it prevented the claimant from accessing his property.
California Court of Appeal (Segal, J.); May 15, 2018; 2018 Cal. App. LEXIS 440