A commentary on insurance coverage issues in Hawaii and beyond
My wife and I are in Houston. Houston is not a vacation destination, but we are here on personal business.
On Saturday, we took a side trip to Galveston. Hurricanes were on my mind. Galveston was the sight of a devastating hurricane in 1900. Further, Tropical Storm Fay is currently lurking…
Can an insured reform an insurance policy that lists the wrong address for the property intended to be insured? A federal district court in Massachusetts recently answered no, at least in regards to a flood insurance policy. See Tucard, LLC v. Fidelity Nat’l Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS…
In Amherst Country Club, Inc. v. Harleysville Worcester Ins. Co., 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 48481 (D. N.H. June 24, 2008), the District Court determined there was no coverage when the loss was caused by both a covered event and an excluded event. The court analyzed the efficient proximate cause doctrine, but found…
The latest Hurricane coverage case issued by the Louisiana Supreme Court had the potential to be another block-buster on the anti-concurrent causation clause we have discussed in prior posts here. See Mark Landry v. Louisiana Citizens Property Ins. Co., No. 2007-C-1907 (La. May 21, 2008). The Court of Appeal had determined…
The Associated Press reports here that the Senate passed today its version of a bill extending the National Flood Insurance Program for five more years. In order to make the program more financially solvent, the bill would increase premiums and reduce subsidies. The Senate rejected extending the program to cover wind damage. The…
The Pacific Business News reports here that hurricane insurance should be more easily available thanks to a partnership formed between Argo Group US and First Insurance Co. of Hawaii. First Insurance will transfer approximately 13,000 hurricane endorsements to Argo, who will then issue new hurricane policies. The good news is that this partnership will…
Reading many Katrina-related cases and the onset of National Flood Safety Awareness Week this week forces me to ponder the purchase of flood insurance. Every article and relevant website on the subject advocates the purchase of flood insurance. Still, our Honolulu home is on high ground, a mile and a half from the …
Hawaii courts have yet to determine the impact of an anti-concurrent cause provision when a property owner suffers damage caused by wind and rain. The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland recently found such a provision in a homeowner’s policy barred coverage where both wind and rain caused damage. Bao v. …
The interplay between wind and flood coverage after a catastrophic storm is always of interest to Hawaii insurance law because we live in a state prone to hurricane damage. The latest case to address the dichotomy between wind and flood coverage is Ragas v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Co., 2008 U.S. …
The Frankfort, Indiana Times reports that as a consequence of heavy flooding this winter, state insurance regulators will require additional training for agents selling flood insurance. Home insurance policies generally do not include coverage for flood damage. Only one percent of Indiana’s 2.3 million homes have such insurance, while flood losses from 1998 …
