Kanye West sues Lloyds of London

[Happy Jack]

Now there's a title you didn't expect to read.

Kanye cancelled a string of concerts last year after displaying "strained, confused and erratic" behaviour at his concert in Sacramento. He then spent a week in a psychiatric hospital.

Lloyds are refusing to cough up on the cancellation costs, on the grounds that the star's excessive use of marijuana had led to this behaviour.

And where do I get this from? The BBC? The NME? Another 3-letter acronym?

Nope. The Financial Times, Companies & Markets section.

[Geek99]

if its true, it seems fair to me.

[TheGreek]

I think he may have taken on the wrong Legal team.....

[uk_lefty]

Interesting test case...
How do you prove that chain of causation without access to medical records? Can you prove it?

He definitely has some need a psychiatric help, comes across as having some serious inferiority issues IMO.

[Dropzone]

He'll be suing queen next for doing bohemian rhapsody in tune. Twit.

[bubinga5]

[quote name='Dropzone' timestamp='1501774528' post='3347285']
He'll be suing queen next for doing bohemian rhapsody in tune. Twit.
[/quote]Erm, no. He's a genius apparently

[Thunderbird]

[quote name='bubinga5' timestamp='1501776502' post='3347302']
Erm, no. He's a genius apparently
[/quote]but he can't sing for sh*t

[dannybuoy]

Amazing what passes for genius these days. Taking a vocal sample up two octaves so it sounds like cats screeching then adding some unimaginative rapping over the top seems to be the bar!

[Cato]

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1501777854' post='3347320']
Amazing what passes for genius these days. Taking a vocal sample up two octaves so it sounds like cats screeching then adding some unimaginative rapping over the top seems to be the bar!
[/quote]

His early stuff was excellent.

He used to be fairly normal and modest (for a rapper) but a few years back his mum died suddenly. That's when the weirdness started.

I also blame him for developing the autotune/vocoder style which seems to be dominating popular music at the moment.

Edited August 3, 2017 by Cato

[nukedukem]

Admittedly I have limited legal knowledge, but it seems like it would be hard to prove his issues were down to cannabis use, as uk lefty said. With my also limited Kanye West knowledge, I've never heard anything about him being a stoner either. Lloyd's didn't make £2.1 billion last year from paying out claims though I guess

[Delberthot]

[quote name='Cato' timestamp='1501778344' post='3347324']
His early stuff was excellent.

He used to be fairly normal and modest (for a rapper) but a few years back his mum died suddenly. That's when the weirdness started.

I also blame him for developing the autotune/vocoder style which seems to be dominating popular music at the moment.
[/quote]

I thought that was Cher back in 1998?

[uk_lefty]

[quote name='Delberthot' timestamp='1501780831' post='3347342']


I thought that was Cher back in 1998?
[/quote]

Or Buble since he started being forced through the radio making me want to rip off my own ears?

[Dood]

[quote name='Delberthot' timestamp='1501780831' post='3347342']
I thought that was Cher back in 1998?
[/quote]

oh gawd, just when I thought I had forgotten about that. Cheers Delberthot ha ha ha ha!!!!

[Bobthedog]

[quote name='nukedukem' timestamp='1501778971' post='3347330']
Lloyd's didn't make £2.1 billion last year from paying out claims though I guess
[/quote]

A slightly unfair not in context comment. They actually paid out £ 2.1bn in major claims alone; up from £0.7bn the year before. That number above the is also the pre tax profit; made chiefly from investment returns and not underwriting. In other words they did not make that profit from premiums against claims.

Their combined ratio was 97.9% - in other words for every £1 premium; 97.9pence went in claims / expenses.

[Burns-bass]

Tough way to make money is insurance. They would need to have specified in the documentation about drug use. If you dig out the Rolling Stones insurance policy for the tour they did it's worth taking a look at what is and isn't covered for those guys. Fascinating, if a little odd.

[nukedukem]

[quote name='Bobthedog' timestamp='1501784416' post='3347393']
A slightly unfair not in context comment. They actually paid out £ 2.1bn in major claims alone; up from £0.7bn the year before. That number above the is also the pre tax profit; made chiefly from investment returns and not underwriting. In other words they did not make that profit from premiums against claims.

Their combined ratio was 97.9% - in other words for every £1 premium; 97.9pence went in claims / expenses.
[/quote]

I stand corrected

[Dad3353]

I thought Kanye West was a Glaswegian underground station near Partick.

[spectoremg]

Imagine - Kanye blaming everyone else?

[drTStingray]

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1501754734' post='3347100']
Now there's a title you didn't expect to read.

Kanye cancelled a string of concerts last year after displaying "strained, confused and erratic" behaviour at his concert in Sacramento. He then spent a week in a psychiatric hospital.

Lloyds are refusing to cough up on the cancellation costs, on the grounds that the star's excessive use of marijuana had led to this behaviour.

And where do I get this from? The BBC? The NME? Another 3-letter acronym?

Nope. The Financial Times, Companies & Markets section.
[/quote]

Extraordinary that an insurance company should be able to diagnose the cause of mental illness so readily when the medical profession itself is often unable to over someone's lifetime!! Even more tenuous the link between marijuana (as opposed to other class B substances) and mental illness. This wouldn't have anything to do with the fact it'd cost them a lot of money to pay out so they owe it to their shareholders to contest the claim as a matter of course?

Whatever next? Insurance companies refusing to pay out on motor insurance claims because someone may have used intoxicating substances in the past (even alcohol)! Some of us may have had quite 'interesting' experiences with insurance companies in the past so this will come as no shock!!

[Dan Dare]

Of course an insurance company owes it to its shareholders to check rigorously before paying a claim. They're in business to make money (what other reason is there?). KW is hardly a sweet little old lady who has had a minor bump in his Nissan Micra, is he?

Edited August 4, 2017 by Dan Dare

[TimR]

If people witnessed him taking drugs before behaving erratically that's all the evidence they need.

Would you expect your holiday insurance to pay up if they wouldn't let you on the flight because you were drunk?

The insurance company would also have acress to his medical records.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/kanye-wests-hospital-stay-rappers-troubled-recent-weeks-w453465

Edited August 4, 2017 by TimR

[Monkey Steve]

[quote name='drTStingray' timestamp='1501799007' post='3347501'] Extraordinary that an insurance company should be able to diagnose the cause of mental illness so readily when the medical profession itself is often unable to over someone's lifetime!! Even more tenuous the link between marijuana (as opposed to other class B substances) and mental illness. This wouldn't have anything to do with the fact it'd cost them a lot of money to pay out so they owe it to their shareholders to contest the claim as a matter of course? Whatever next? Insurance companies refusing to pay out on motor insurance claims because someone may have used intoxicating substances in the past (even alcohol)! Some of us may have had quite 'interesting' experiences with insurance companies in the past so this will come as no shock!! [/quote]

To use this analogy, it's not that they won't pay out if you've taken some substances that are incompatible with driving at some point in the past, it's more likely that being aware of this behaviour, the policy will specify that doing those things while driving will void the cover. Lloyds can't just say "nah, we don't fancy paying out, he was on drugs", they will have specifically stated in the policy that they're not paying out if Kanye ends up cancelling because of drugs. Pretty standard I'd have thought (and as I understand it very standard in the insurance cover for films, with the leading actors having to stay clean, or not getting hired at all - http://www.netquote.com/health-insurance/news/uninsurable-hollywood-stars )

[Jakester]

A few misconceptions here. Firstly, if the story is true (I've no reason to doubt, I just haven't actually seen it though!) then Kanye will not be suing Lloyds - as it isn't an insurance company - it's a marketplace for syndicates of underwriters to transact insurance business. Secondly, the syndicate in question won't have to prove Kanye's mental health or otherwise - the policy will most likely be written on terms that respond to the happening or otherwise of a particular incident (the insured perils). If the cancellation was not as a result of one of these insured perils, the policy won't respond. Perils would be storm, civil unrest, equipment failure, physical injury and other similar ones. If it's not specified, it's not covered.

The burden of proving it falls within cover is on Kanye - so, say he claims illness as a reason for cancellation; firstly they would check whether it's covered, and if not, they've reject his claim. It all depends on the terms he agreed beforehand. So if cannabis psychosis (or other mental health issues) are not within the scope of cover, the policy would not respond.

Noone's using mental health as an excuse or stigmatising it.

[drTStingray]

[quote name='Jakester' timestamp='1501839117' post='3347665']
Noone's using mental health as an excuse or stigmatising it.
[/quote]

Your post is a good clarification.

Let's hope not! Or stereotyping black rap artists.

Cannabis induced psychosis is an interesting one - possibly exacerbation of a pre-existing condition rather than actually creating the condition in the first place.

Edited August 4, 2017 by drTStingray

[MoonBassAlpha]

One of the exclusions may be: Having a load of money and behaving like a total asshat does not mean you're insured when it all goes wrong.