After the agent informed the insured there was no coverage and submitting a claim would be a useless effort, the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeal reversed the trial court's dismissal of the insured's suit against the agent. Pflueger, Inc. v. AIG Holdings, Inc., 2022 Haw. App. LEXIS 279 (Haw. Ct. App. Sept.
Broker's Negligence
Claims Against Broker Dismissed
By Tred R. Eyerly on
Claims that the broker failed to secure adequate coverage for condominium owners were dismissed. Ting Lin v. Mountain Valley Indemn. Co., 2022 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1254 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. March 10, 2022).
The amended complaint alleged the agent, Century Max Inc., breached its duty to advise and sell to plaintiffs…
Hawaii Federal District Court Grants Preliminary Approval of Settlement on Volcano Damage
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The federal district court granted preliminary approval of the class action settlement reached on behalf of insureds who suffered property damage due to the 2018 Kilauea eruption on the Big Island. Aquilina v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's London, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 152614 (D. Haw. Aug. 13, 2021).
After destruction…
Claims against Broker for Insufficient Coverage Fail
By Tred R. Eyerly on
After a coverage dispute for damage caused by Hurricane Harvey was settled, the insured's claims against its insurance broker for providing insufficient coverage were dismissed. Hitchcock Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 57452 (S.D. Texas Feb. 26, 2021).
The School District suffered $3.5…
Adding Negligent and Fraudulent Misrepresentation Claims in Amended Complaint against Broker Upheld
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The court approved the magistrate's decision granting a motion to amend the complaint against the broker for negligent misrepresentation and negligent misrepresentation. Ashford Locke Builders v. GM Contrs. Plus Corp., 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 196646 (E.D. N. Y. Oct. 22, 2020).
The broker challenged the amended complaint, arguing that plaintiffs…
Request for Stay Denied in Dispute Over Coverage for Volcano Damage
By Tred R. Eyerly on
Although there were concurrent state and federal proceedings regarding the insureds' claims for damage caused by Kilauea Volcano, the federal district court refused to dismiss or stay the federal action. Aqulina v Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's Syndicate #2003, 465 F. Supp. 3d 1066 (D. Haw. 2020).
Plaintiffs held homeowner's policies from…
Insurer’s Summary Judgment Motion for Rescission or Reformation of Umbrella Policy Fails
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The insurer was unsuccessful in seeking rescission or reformation of an umbrella policy. Great Am. Ins. Co. v. Zelik, 2020 U.S. District. LEXIS 5229 (S.D. N. Y. Jan. 6, 2020).
Kim Hodges tripped and fell in front of vacant lot owned by Joseph Zelik, a real estate investor. Zelik tendered…
Insurance Agent Successful in Dismissing Insureds’ Claims for Fraud
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The Federal District Court for Hawaii granted Moa Insurance Services Hawaii's (Moa) motion to dismiss the insureds' complaint alleging that they had been forced to purchase worthless surplus lines policies for volcano damage. Aquilina v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's Syndicate #2003, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 165866 (D. Haw. Sept. 26, 2019).
…
Broker’s Collateral Estoppel Argument Fails
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The broker's motion to dismiss the insured complaint for negligence based upon collateral estoppel was unsuccessful. Gjonaj Realty & Mgt. Corp. v. Capacity Group of NY LLC, 2019 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4880 (N.Y. App. Div. June 18, 2019).
The insured was sued in a personal injury action. A default…
Court Rejects Remand and Argument that Insurance Agent Fraudulently Joined
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The federal district court refused to remand the case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction despite the insurer's argument that plaintiffs fraudulently joined their insurance agent as a defendant. Goostree v. Liberty Nat'l Life Ins. Co., 2019 LEXIS U.S. Dis. LEXIS 100604 (N.D. Ala. June 17, 2019).
Plaintiffs filed a…