The Indiana Supreme Court recently aligned itself with the Hawaii Supreme Court in deciding an insurance policy could not be assigned without the insurer's consent. Travelers Cas. and Sur. Co. v. United States Filter Corp., 2008 Ind. LEXIS 953 (Ind. Sup. Ct. Oct. 15, 2008). The holding in Travelers is consistent with the
Mere Reference of Insurer in Policy Does Not Bind Insurer
By Tred R. Eyerly on
In Southern Surgery Center, LLC v. Fidelity and Guaranty Ins. Co., 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79971 (S. D. Miss., Oct. 8, 2008), United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company ("USF&G") insured a building owned by Southern Development Resources, LLC ("SDR"). A different insurer, Fidelity and Guaranty Insurance Company, insured two other companies related…
Court Ponders Whether the Insurer Bad Faith Committed If No Excess Judgment against Insured
By Tred R. Eyerly on
Does the insurer act in bad faith when there is no excess judgment against the insured? Further, is there bad faith when the insurer’s actions never resulted in the insured’s increased exposure to liability for more than the policy limits? These two issues confronted the Eleventh Circuit in Perera v. United States Fidelity …
Third Circuit Applies Doctrine of Uberrimae Fidei to Void Marine Policy
By Tred R. Eyerly on
In today’s post, we return to the federal maritime doctrine of uberrimae fidei, previously reviewed here. Should the doctrine, which requires an insured to exercise the utmost good faith and disclose to the insurer all facts material to an insurance risk, apply when considering coverage under a marine policy? The Third…
Despite Assignment, Insurer’s Payment to Victim Not Recoverable From Victim’s Insurer
By Tred R. Eyerly on
If, after being fully compensated for injuries, the insured assigns her rights to underinsured benefits to another insurer, is the insurer entitled to the insured’s right to benefits? The Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals answered no in AIG Hawaii Ins. Co. v. State Farm Ins. Co., No. 27789 (Haw. Ct. App. Oct.
Insurer Not Entitled to Summary Judgment When Repairs Uncompleted
By Tred R. Eyerly on
If an insurer pays for repairs to a building based on the insured’s preliminary estimate of damage, does the insured have further obligations to pay for property damage? This was one of the issues in Chateau Argonne Condominium Assoc. v. State Farm Ins. Co., 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 70917 (E.D. La. Sept.
Sinkhole Collapse Not Excluded as Earth Movement
By Tred R. Eyerly on
In Federated Rural Elec. Ins. Corp. v. TIG Ins. Co., 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 20268 (9th Cir. Sept. 19, 2008), the issue was whether an excess, following form policy excluded coverage for "sinkhole collapse" under its earth movement exclusion.
TIG’s excess policy excluded "earth movement," but did not define "earth…
Insurer Entitled to Attorney Fees Under Assumpsit Statute
By Tred R. Eyerly on
In a recommended decision, a United States magistrate determined the insurer was entitled to attorney fees under Hawaii’s assumpsit statute, Haw. Rev. Stat. 607-14. See Deguchi v. Allstate Ins. Co., 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 73072 (D. Haw. Sept. 23, 2008).
A prior post discussed the facts of Deguchi. Briefly…
Insurer’s Suit Challenging Hawaii’s Commissioner is Premature
By Tred R. Eyerly on
In Hawaii Management Alliance Assoc. v. Schmidt, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 69995 (D. Haw. Sept. 5, 2008), the the insured ("HMAA"), a mutual benefit society, challenged a memorandum issued by the Hawaii Insurance Commissioner which stated granting a plan administrator discretionary authority so as to deprive the insured of a de novo…
Attorney Fees Denied Despite Insured’s Successful Suit Securing Coverage
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The simple issue in Mohnkern v. The Professional Ins. Co. was: does a Florida statute automatically award attorneys’ fees upon a successful outcome by the beneficiary/insured? Or does the statute require the insurer to have wrongfully caused the insured/beneficiary to resort to litigation before attorneys’ fees can be awarded?
The Florida…