A commentary on insurance coverage issues in Hawaii and beyond
The issue in Fabozzi v. Lexington Ins. Co., 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 7040 (2nd Cir. April 6, 2010), was whether the limitations period for suit against the insurer was triggered when damage to the insureds' home occurred or when all the conditions precedent to filing suit had been met.
When first issuing…
Plaintiff's home was damaged by Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005. See Bridges v. EMC Mortgage Corp., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18433 (S.D. Miss. March 2, 2010). She filed suit against her insurer, Liberty Mutual. In her amended complaint, the plaintiff added her mortgage company, EMC, as a defendant, alleging EMC failed to…
The ABA’s Section of Litigation, Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee’s annual conference was held in Tucson last week. Rina Carmel and I led a lively discussion on applicable triggers for property policies. Although the manifestation of an injury has been used by some courts to trigger a property policy, the injury-in-fact trigger has more recently been adopted by other courts. The outline for our presentation is here.
Is damage caused by snow melt excluded under a homeowner's policy because it constitutes standing water? The court answered yes in Northwest Bedding Co. v. Nat. Fire Ins. Co. of Hartford, No. 28044-6, 2010 Wash. App. LEXIS 299 (Wa. Ct. App. Feb. 11, 2010).
The Spokane area, where the insured's buildings were located, experienced…
In Builders' Mutual Ins. Co. v. Glascarr Prop., Inc., No. COA09-486, 2010 N.C. App. LEXIS 186, (N.C. Ct. App. Feb. 2, 2010), the court found no coverage for loss caused by mold because of the anti-concurrent causation clause. Whether reliance on the anti-concurrent causation clause was correct is difficult to determine from the facts…
After the insureds' home was damaged by Hurricane Wilma, they filed a claim for reimbursement. Sunshine paid the claim and closed the file. See Sunshine State Ins. Co. v. Corridori, No. 4D09-2502, 2010 Fla. App. LEXIS 915 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App.Feb. 3, 2010). Two years later, the insureds submitted a "supplemental" claim for damage discovered…
How long can an insurer wait after denying coverage before insisting upon an appraisal? In Sanchez v. Prop. and Cas. Ins. Co. of Hartford, No. H-09-1736, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 6295 (S.D. Tex. Jan. 27, 2010), waiting eleven months after a coverage dispute became clear waived the insurer's right to invoke an appraisal.
The insured's home was…
The insureds' negligence claim against the insurer for failing to recommend the purchase of business interruption insurance survived the insurer's motion for partial summary judgment in St. Augustine High School v. Underwriters at Lloyd's of London, No. WMN-08-CV-2518, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 6570 (D. Md. Jan. 27, 2010).
St. Joseph Society was…
The ABA, Section of Litigation, Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee's annual insurance seminar will be held again this year in Tucson from March 4-6, 2010. As always, this year's conference will offer a number of informative, cutting edge sessions on a variety of insurance-related topics. Participants from across the country with varying perspectives on insurance coverage will attend. …
Is an insurer exposed to bad faith if it relies upon its own mistake to withhold payment under the policy? The court answered yes in Lundy Enterprises, LLC v. Wausau Underwriters Ins. Co., No. 06-3509, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 121295 (E.D. La. Dec. 30, 2009).
Wausau provided commercial property coverage for the insured's…
