One insurer is taking another to federal court over a parking-lot fall and a defense bill it says should not be its own.
Charter Oak Fire Insurance filed a declaratory judgment complaint on May 14, 2026 in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, asking a judge to decide which carrier owes the defense in an underlying personal injury case.
The dispute starts with a 2022 paving job. According to the complaint, Montrose Partners of Albany, L.P. hired Stefano Paving in July 2022 to repair the parking lot at the Montrose Price Chopper Plaza in Montrose, Pennsylvania. The agreement - an AIA Document A104-2017 standard form - required Stefano to carry commercial general liability cover with minimum limits of $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate, name Montrose Partners as an additional insured, and make that coverage primary and non-contributory.
Stefano's MSA policy, in force from November 1, 2022 to November 1, 2023, contained three endorsements Charter Oak is leaning on. BPM 3142 covers liability for bodily injury "caused, in whole or in part, by [the named insured's] acts or omissions... in the performance of 'your work' and included in the 'products-completed operations hazard.'" BP 04 51 does the same for ongoing operations. BPM 3148 makes the cover primary and non-contributory where a written contract requires it.
The underlying case comes from a fall in the plaza parking lot. Lynne Schopf alleges that on February 21, 2023, she tripped on a raised portion of asphalt. She and Rick Schopf filed a 26-count negligence and loss-of-consortium suit in the Court of Common Pleas of Lackawanna County on January 17, 2025, with each count seeking damages in excess of $50,000 plus interest, costs, and punitive damages. Two counts target Stefano's paving work directly.
Charter Oak says the tendering started long before the federal filing. A formal letter went to Stefano on August 6, 2024 by regular and certified mail, demanding primary and non-contributory additional insured coverage for Montrose Partners. The complaint says no response came back. A second tender went to AFICS Inc. on behalf of MSA on February 18, 2025. MSA replied on June 2, 2025, the filing states, declining to accept the tender "as we continue to investigate this matter." A renewed demand on June 26, 2025 also drew no acceptance, according to Charter Oak.
The legal argument is the standard one for these fights. Charter Oak says an insurer's duty to defend is determined by holding the underlying complaint up against the policy, and that any allegation potentially within coverage triggers the duty. The Schopf complaint, according to Charter Oak, alleges that Stefano negligently paved the lot, created a dangerous raised asphalt condition, and failed to remedy it - the very kind of claim the additional insured endorsements were written to cover. MSA's "still investigating" line, Charter Oak says, is "insufficient as a matter of law to defeat or delay the duty to defend."
The five counts ask the court to declare Montrose Partners an additional insured, confirm MSA's coverage as primary and non-contributory, recognise a duty to defend and indemnify, and order MSA to reimburse Charter Oak for all defense costs advanced since August 6, 2024.
The allegations have not been tested in court. MSA has not yet filed a response, and no court has ruled on the dispute.
