Kut and Kill Lawn Care sues insurance provider for breach of contract and 'duties of good faith'

Kut and Kill Lawn Care has sued its insurance company after it informed the Sioux Falls company it wouldn't cover damages from more than 300 lawns that were chemically burned after an incorrect fertilizer application.

According to court documents, Kut and Kill Lawn Care sued United Fire, an insurance company based out of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, at the end of June for a base number of $75,000.

According to the documents, "The amount in controversy is in excess of $75,000, exclusive of interest and costs."

After a disastrous weed-control application back in April and May, Kut and Kill was left to cover the damages done to 302 properties in the Sioux Falls and Harrisburg area.

Earlier: Legal expert weighs in on why insurance denied Kut and Kill coverage, what happens next

The company's insurance provider, United Fire, stated in mid-June that they would not provide coverage for the damages, a claim Kut and Kill owner Tate Eining said he would fight.

"We’ve analyzed the policy and have concluded there is no coverage for customers of Kut & Kill whose lawns were damaged," Casey Prince, media representative for United Fire Group, said in a statement at the time.

Eining filed a lawsuit on June 24, saying United Fire's actions were in breach of the insurance contracts as well as "duties of good faith and fair dealing," according to court documents.

"Kut and Kill is subject to potentially millions of dollars of liability claims as customers demand a variety of redress, including but not limited to demands for seeding, over-seeding, hydro-seeding, re-sodding and other alleged damages," reads the court document.

The documents note the primary insurance policy for Kut and Kill has a coverage limit of $2 million, and the umbrella policy covers up to an additional $3 million for damages caused by "bodily injury" or "property damage."

Kut and Kill also argues that United Fire didn't ask for more information for their investigation into the claims and therefore failed to properly investigate before denying coverage.

Kut and Kill damaged lawns due to 'accident'

The chemical burn was caused by a Kut and Kill employee mixing the wrong chemicals for routine weed control applications between April 19 and May 3.

The chemicals weren't activated until early May after temperatures warmed up, which is when the mistake became apparent and dead lawns sprouted up throughout Sioux Falls.

The Harrisburg-based company took steps to remedy the issue, including seeding properties for 250 of the 302 affected customers, but a delay in answers from the insurance provider led to a loss of customers.

Eining said in the court document he had "gotten screamed at 15 times a day for the last two weeks," because he wasn't able to provide updates on the insurance. He also said he was losing many accounts, and that a lack of answers could lead to an "unrecoverable" fallout.

Kut and Kill eventually stopped all mowing and fertilizer services July 1 because of staffing shortages and the fallout from April's chemical accident, but the business still provides sod work, irrigation and landscaping as employees seek to repair damaged lawns. 

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Sioux Falls' Kut and Kill sues insurance provider for lack of coverage