Opinion
April 21, 1986
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Queens County (Berkowitz, J.).
Judgment affirmed, with costs.
Based upon the evidence on this record, we conclude that the trial court's findings were not against the weight of the credible evidence. A fair interpretation of the evidence could have led the trial court to conclude that the plaintiff reasonably undertook to investigate the details of an alleged accident on its premises, and upon such investigation formed a reasonable, good-faith belief of nonliability which excused its seeming failure to comply with a provision in the insurance policy which required that the insured notify the insurer of an accident "as soon as practicable" (see, Security Mut. Ins. Co. v Acker-Fitzsimons Corp., 31 N.Y.2d 436; Holyoke Mut. Ins. Co. v B.T.B. Realty Corp., 83 A.D.2d 603). We further note that upon being served with legal process, the plaintiff immediately forwarded the papers to Interboro.
The trial court properly allowed the plaintiff's witness to testify about out-of-court statements of a third party, which revealed the nature of the accident and injuries, since such evidence was not offered for the truth of the statements, but was offered solely to establish the witness' state of mind, i.e., could he reasonably rely on such statements and in so relying form a good-faith belief of nonliability. As such, this testimony was not hearsay and was properly admitted (see, Matter of Bergstein v. Board of Educ., 34 N.Y.2d 318; Holyoke Mut. Ins. Co. v. B.T.B. Realty Corp., supra).
We have reviewed Interboro's other arguments and find them to be without merit. Mollen, P.J., Mangano, Gibbons and Bracken, JJ., concur.