A commentary on insurance coverage issues in Hawaii and beyond
A signed work proposal and unsigned agreement were sufficient to create a "written agreement" to create coverage to the contractor as an additional insured. West Bend Mut. Ins. Co. v. DJW-Ridgeway Bldg. Consultants, Inc., 2015 Ill. App. LEXIS 391 (Ill. Ct. App. May 19. 2015).
Ridgeway was the general contractor for construction…
The Ninth Circuit found that a pollution endorsement did not cover the cost of retrieving oil barrels that did not discharge pollutants. Guam Industrial Services, Inc. v. Zurich Am. Ins. Co., 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 9045 (9th Cir. June 1, 2015).
Guam Industrial's dry dock sank into the harbor. Various containers in…
The Illinois Appellate Court affirmed the trial court's ruling that the insurer had a duty to defend a construction defect case. West Bend Mut. Ins. Co. v. Pulte Home Corp., 2015 Ill App. Unpub. LEXIS 1039 (Ill. Ct. App. May 15, 2015).
Pulte Home Corporation was a developer who developed and constructed…
The Sixth Circuit rejected the insurer's claim for reverse bad faith against its insured who made a fraudulent claim after her home was destroyed by fire. State Auto Property and Cas. Ins. Co. v. Hargis, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 7475 (6th Cir. April 23, 2015).
The insured's home burned to the ground…
The Indiana Supreme Court reversed summary judgment issued to reinsurer Continental Casualty Company (CNA) and determined it must reimburse the insured for settlement costs under the E & O policy. Wellpoint, Inc., et al. v. National Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, PA, et al., 2015 Ind. LEXIS 316 (Ind. April 22, 2015). …
The 2015 Hawaii legislative session passed three insurance-related bills which have all been signed by the governor. Bills that have been enacted are the following:
SB0589 – We previously devoted this post to the legislation. The bill provides relief for residents in lava zones on the Big Island. The bill limits the number of…
While some of their claims were dismissed, plaintiffs' breach of fiduciary duty survived the insurer's motion to dismiss. Senft v. Fireman's Fund Ins. Co., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 61870 (D. N.J. May 12, 2015).
Plaintiffs' waterfront home was insured by Fireman's Fund. Plaintiffs alleged that the broker represented that the policy…
Applying the manifestation trigger, the Louisiana Court of Appeal affirmed denial of coverage where the property damage manifested after the policy period expired. Landry v. Williamson, 2015 La. App. Unpub. LEXIS 213 (La. Ct. App. May 1, 2015).
On August 28, 2002, the Burkarts purchased a home from the Williamsons. One month…
The federal district court considered a variety of discovery requests by the insured in a bad faith case against State Farm. Stephens v. State Farm Fire and Cas. Co., 2015 WL 1638516 (M.D. Pa. April 13, 2015).
The insured plaintiff was a quadriplegic. His complaint alleged that he notified State Farm, through…
