Liberty Mut. Ins. Co. v. Custombilt, Inc.

• Citation: 512 A.2d 1098,128 N.H. 167
• Decision Date: 05 June 1986
• Docket Number: No. 84-562,84-562
• Parties: LIBERTY MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, v. CUSTOMBILT, INC.
• Court: New Hampshire Supreme Court

Page 1098

512 A.2d 1098

128 N.H. 167

LIBERTY MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, v. CUSTOMBILT, INC.

No. 84-562.

Supreme Court of New Hampshire.

June 5, 1986.

James R. Patten, Ossipee, by brief and orally, for plaintiff.

Gray, Wendell & Clark, Manchester (Grenville Clark, III, on brief and orally), and Gray & Wendell, Boston, Mass. (Brona Pinnolis on brief), for defendant.

JOHNSON, Justice.

The defendant, Custombilt, Inc., appeals from a verdict granting the plaintiff, Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, the right to recover premiums for workers' compensation insurance purchased by the defendant company. We affirm the decision of the trial court in finding for the plaintiff, but reverse the court's determination of the amount of premiums to be paid, and remand.

The defendant, Custombilt, sells and installs aluminum and vinyl siding for residential and commercial properties. Once Custombilt has made successful telephone solicitations for business, it employs others to install the siding. According to our worker's compensation statute, the defendant is considered a "contractor," and those installing siding for Custombilt or any similar business, are considered "subcontractors." RSA 281:4-a.

The plaintiff, Liberty Mutual, filed suit against the defendant on March 29, 1982, asserting that it was owed premium payments for workers' compensation coverage for periods ending on the following dates: October 14, 1978, October 14, 1979, and June 30, 1980.

In a ruling issued July 31, 1984, the Trial Court (Pappagianis, J.) found for the plaintiff, although it did not specify the amount of damages. The defendant then moved to hold the appeal deadline in abeyance or to hold a rehearing on damages, since no specific amount had been awarded to the plaintiff.

In response to Custombilt's motion, the trial court issued an "order on costs" on September 11, 1984, declaring that the finding for the plaintiff was for the amount of $21,323 plus interest, the same amount stated in the declaration of the writ. The defendant appealed.

The defendant contends that the trial court erred in awarding premiums to the plaintiff and, alternatively, that the trial court erred in its method of computing the amount of the premiums the plaintiff should be allowed to recover. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand.

First, we hold that the trial court was correct in awarding the plaintiff a verdict and requiring that the defendant pay premiums for workers' compensation insurance. We have stated that the "findings and rulings of the trial court must be sustained unless they are lacking in evidential support or tainted by error of law." Burnham v. Downing, 125 N.H. 293, 296, 480 A.2d 128, 130 (1984) (citations omitted). We, therefore, review the rulings of the trial court in light of the evidence presented.

This case required the trial court to apply RSA 281:4-a. That statute provides that a business such as Custombilt must provide workers' compensation coverage for its own employees and employees of any subcontractor engaged in work on its behalf. The contractor need not provide coverage for the subcontractors themselves, nor for the subcontractors' employees if the subcontractors have already provided their workers with such coverage.

The lower court found, based on factual evidence, that the siding installers who worked for Custombilt were "independent contractors." In the language of RSA 281:4-a, these installers are termed "subcontractors." The defendant was not responsible for providing workers' compensation coverage for these subcontractors. The statute allows them an election to provide or not to provide coverage for themselves or their partners.

The remaining question, however, and the major issue in the court below, is whether these subcontractors had employees for whom Custombilt was obligated to provide workers' compensation coverage. According to RSA 281:4-a, Custombilt was liable for providing workers' compensation for such employees unless...