The rapper was forced to cancel shows following a mental breakdown which
saw him admitted to a psychiatric facility for treatment.
21
dates were cancelled in total after his admittance to the mental health
facility in LA, and Kanye and his touring company Very Good Touring
claim the insurance company had still not paid out for the loss of
earnings, also claiming the insurer is actively trying to find ways of
avoiding a pay out.
Very Good Touring said in a legal
document filed on Tuesday August 1 that the London-based insurers has
implied it can refuse to pay out by claiming his marijuana use is
responsible for his medical condition.
The artist spent
‘hundreds of thousands of dollars’ on insurance with Lloyd’s to cover
the costs of a cancellation but is yet to receive a payment, according
to the document lodged in a Californian federal court. ‘Nor have they
provided anything approaching a coherent explanation about why they have
not paid, or any indication if they will ever pay or even make a
coverage decision, implying that Kanye’s use of marijuana may provide
them with the basis to deny the claim,’ lawyer Howard King wrote.
Mr
King, representing Kanye’s firm, dismissed the allegation that cannabis
use led to his ‘serious, debilitating medical condition’ as an
‘unsupportable contention’.
The document details that West
was playing in Sacramento, California, on November 19when his ‘strained,
confused and erratic’ behaviour caused him to stop the show.
He
then spent eight days in a neuropsychiatric centre at UCLA during which
it was decided he could not go on with the tour, it adds.
Kanye’s lawyer also claims damaging information was leaked to the press.
The
lawyer also took aim at Lloyd’s business model, claiming it accepts
‘bounteous’ premiums and then runs ‘unending’ investigations to avoid
making pay-out decisions.
‘The artists think they’re buying peace of mind. The insurers know they’re just selling a ticket to the courthouse,’ he wrote.
Very
Good Touring is suing for more than 9,861,000 dollars (£7,464,000) in
damages and is demanding interest be paid over the alleged breach of
contract.
A spokeswoman for Lloyd’s of London declined to
discuss the Kanye West legal action, saying: ‘We’re not able to comment
on matters in litigation.’
from metro