A commentary on insurance coverage issues in Hawaii and beyond
The Arizona Court of Appeals upheld the insured's assignment of benefits despite the policy's anti-assignment provision. Farmers Ins. Exchange v. Honorable David Udall, 2018 Ariz. Ct. App. LEXIS 94 (Ariz. June 12, 2018).
Farmers issued homeowners' policies to four homeowners who later required water damage mitigation and restoration services. Each…
Faced with a series of policies, earlier ones which did not define collapse, newer policies which did, the court determined there was a possibility of coverage under the older policies which did not define collapse. Vera v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100548 (D. Conn. June 15, 2018).…
Connecticut courts have been swamped with cases seeking coverage for collapse caused by faulty cement. In a recent decision, the federal district court asked the Connecticut Supreme Court to determine what constitutes substantial impairment of structural integrity for applying the collapse provision of a policy. Karas v. Liberty Ins. Corp., 2018 US.
Handling the third appeal of the matter, the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals rejected the insured's claim for bad faith based upon an untimely denial of the claim. Adams v. Haw. Med. Serv. Ass'n, 2018 Haw. App. LEXIS 245 (Haw. Ct. App. June 8, 2018) (Disclaimer – our office is co-counsel for…
The United State Supreme Court ruled that the divorced spouse of an insured under a life insurance policy had no constitutional challenge against a state statute that revoked her status as a beneficiary upon the insured's death. Sveen v. Melin, 584 U.S. ___ (2018), 2018 U.S. LEXIS 3503 (U.S. June 11, 2018).…
The insurer's motion for summary judgment to establish there was no coverage for the collapse of the front wall in the insured's home was denied. Desvarieux v. Allstate Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 2018 US. Dist. LEXIS 71230 (E.D. Pa. April 26, 2018).
After the front wall collapsed, a claim…
When two competing experts disagreed on the cause of the loss, the trial court erred in granting summary judgment to the insurer. Garcia v. Firs Community Ins. Co., Fla. App. LEXIS 4237 (Fla. Ct. App. March 28, 2018).
Garcia, the homeowner, discovered water damage in his home, allegedly due to…
The Eleventh Circuit, following Florida law, reversed the district court's granting of summary judgment to the insurer for water damage caused by a collapse in the dwelling's plumbing system. Cameron v. Scottsdale Ins. Co., 2018 U.S. App. LEXIS 9800 (11th Cir. April 16, 2018).
A pipe in the plumbing system…
The district court accepted the magistrate's recommended ruling denying the insurer's motion for summary judgment on breach of contract and bad faith claims in a case involving collapse. Jang v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 51880 (D. Conn. March 27, 2018).
After purchase of their home…
Spring brought to the Puna District of the Big Island numerous volcanic eruptions causing extensive loss of property. As of late May, the lava was moving at a speed to cover six football fields an hour according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Two dozen recent fissures have created lava fountains and explosions during the…
