A commentary on insurance coverage issues in Hawaii and beyond
The Eighth Circuit rejected the policyholder's appeal on the ambiguity of a subsurface water exclusion. Bull v. Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 9703 (8th Cir. May 27, 2016).
Michael Bull, the insured, experienced a leak from a buried pipe beneath his garage slab. The leak caused…
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the jury verdict which determined that the insurer acted in bad faith for failing to settle within policy limits. Bamford, Inc. v. Regent Ins. Co., 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 8787 (8th Cir. May 13, 2016).
In May 2009, an employee of Bamford caused a vehicular accident resulting in…
The Ninth Circuit held that the insurers' duty to defend did not cease after the insured submitted its response to the EPA in a section 104 (e) letter. Ash Grove Cement Co. v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 8663 (9th Cir. May 11, 2016).
Ash Grove operated two cement plants…
Considering certified questions from the federal district court, the Arkansas Supreme Court followed a prior decision in deciding there was no coverage for property loss caused by faulty workmanship based solely on breach of contract. Columbia Ins. Group, Inc. v. Cenark Project Mgt. Services, Inc., 2016 Ark. LEXIS 185 (Ark. April 28, 2016).
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The Minnesota Court of Appeals enforced the policy's anti-assignment provisions for the assignment of no-fault insurance claims to a medical provider. Stand Up Multipositional Advantage MRI, P.A. v. Family Ins. Co., 2016 Minn. App. LEXIS 24 (Minn. Ct. App. April 25, 2016).
Stand Up Multipositional Advantage MRI (SUMA) operated a clinic…
The Montana Supreme Court found that policy language defining "accidents may include intentional acts." Employers Mut. Cas. Co. v. Fisher Builders, Inc., 2016 Mont. LEXIS 269 (Mont. Sup. Ct. April 19, 2016).
Jerry and Karen Slack hired Fisher Builders to build a remodeled home located on the site of their…
The district court ruled that there was no duty to defend the purported additional insured because a purchase order did not invoke additional insured status. Fed. Signal Corp. v. Tammcor Indus., 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 47574 (N.D. Ill. April 7, 2016).
Federal Signal designed a speaker system that was installed on a…
The policy’s faulty workmanship exclusion barred coverage despite an ensuing loss provision. Gateway II LLC v. Hartford Fire Ins. Co., 2016 N. Y. Misc. LEXIS 1325 (Sup. Ct. N. Y. April 5 , 2016).
Water damage occurred at Gateway. The policy provided, “We will not pay for loss or damage caused by or resulting…
Applying Illinois law, the federal district court ruled that there was no coverage for the insured's settlement of claims based upon breach of the implied warranty of habitability. Allied Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co. v. Metro North Condo. Ass'n, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 43452 (E.D. Ill. March 31, 2016).
Metro North sued…
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court's holding that data breach claims were a covered publication. Travelers Indem. Co. of Am. v. Portal Healthcare Solutions, L.L.C., 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 6554 (4th Cir. April 11, 2016).
A class-action complaint was filed against Portal Healthcare Solutions alleging that Portal allowed plaintiffs' private medical…
