The COVID-19 pandemic has swept the world, altering every aspect of daily life — whether it be a morning trip to the gym, a day at the office, a dinner at the Italian restaurant across the street, or a Friday night concert in...more
Insurance policies are designed to indemnify an insured by putting the policyholder in the same position he or she would have been in had no loss occurred. In the context of property insurance policies, damaged property is...more
An assignment of benefits (AOB) is a legal tool that allows a third party to be paid for services performed for an insured property owner who would normally be reimbursed by the insurance company directly after making a...more
In ACE American Ins. Co. v. Exide Technologies, Inc. and The Wattles Co., No. 1:16-CV-1600-MHC (N.D. Ga. Sept. 20, 2017), the Federal District Court for the Northern District of Georgia applied a continuous trigger theory to...more
10/10/2017
/ All-Risks Insurance ,
Breach of Contract ,
Continuous Trigger Theory ,
Damages ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Negligence ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Terms ,
Property Damage ,
Property Insurance ,
Proximate Cause
As the waters recede from Hurricane Irma, there are many issues for property insurers to consider as they adjust claims in Florida, including unique issues raised by assignment of benefits, Florida law on concurrent...more
9/26/2017
/ Assignment of Benefits (AOB) ,
Farms ,
Fire Damage ,
Flood Insurance ,
Florida ,
Hurricane Irma ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Natural Disasters ,
Policy Terms ,
policy-term ,
Property Damage ,
Property Insurance ,
Real Estate Market ,
Severe Weather ,
Wind Damage
As the waters recede from Hurricane Irma, property insurers have many issues to consider as they adjust claims in Florida. This alert discusses a few of those issues.
Claims Reporting -
The Florida Office of Insurance...more
9/26/2017
/ Assignment of Benefits (AOB) ,
Farms ,
Fire Damage ,
Flood Insurance ,
Florida ,
Hurricane Irma ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Natural Disasters ,
Policy Terms ,
Property Damage ,
Property Insurance ,
Real Estate Market ,
Severe Weather ,
Wind Damage
Because Hurricane Harvey claims may be taking you and your colleagues to different states, we thought it might be helpful to bear in mind the claims adjusting standards and regulations in those states that will likely be...more
In Erie Insurance Property and Casualty Company v. Chaber, No. 16-0490 (W. Va. June 1, 2017), the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia reversed a lower court’s decision, holding that damage caused by a landslide was...more
Courts will generally uphold reasonable suit limitation periods in property insurance policies, if the insurer does not affirmatively waive or extend them. In MZM Real Estate Corp. v. Tower Ins. Co. of New York, No....more
It’s said that “defeat is an orphan,” but insurable losses often have multiple, concurrent causes. In some cases, one or more of those causes might be outside the scope of coverage, either by omission or exclusion. In Sebo v....more
12/5/2016
/ All-Risks Insurance ,
Appeals ,
Construction Defects ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
FL Supreme Court ,
Florida ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Limits ,
Policy Terms ,
Property Damage ,
Property Insurance ,
Severe Weather ,
Toxic Mold
Because Hurricane Matthew claims may be taking you and your colleagues to several different states, we thought it might be helpful to bear in mind the different claims adjusting standards and regulations in those states that...more
As this blog has reported, exclusions and limits for flood coverage have generally held up against the tide of claims arising from Superstorm Sandy. Now that the water is gone, however, new losses have been discovered, and...more
9/26/2016
/ All-Risks Insurance ,
Amtrak ,
Demolition ,
Flood Insurance ,
Flooding ,
Hurricane Sandy ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Natural Disasters ,
Policy Limits ,
Property Damage ,
Property Insurance ,
Railways ,
Severe Weather ,
Summary Judgment ,
Transportation Industry
When a property insurance policy covers a multi-story building or multi-building property, and a portion sustains damage, there is often a question regarding the extent to which undamaged property should be replaced to ensure...more
The land in Florida is prone to sinking and insurance companies must often scramble for solid footing on which to anchor the scope of coverage for sinkhole losses. In Hegel v. First Liberty Insurance Corporation (11th Cir....more
Property damage can be sudden and dramatic, but it can also be subtle and insidious, and that can make it hard to identify the moment when properly coverage is implicated. As a result, courts have recognized several...more
Liability policies typically provide coverage for amounts the insured “become[s] legally obligated to pay”—but they leave open the question of how that obligation should be determined. Judgments and settlements clearly...more
October 29 marked the second anniversary of Superstorm Sandy’s assault on New York and New Jersey. Although the insurance litigation arising from this storm is just beginning, we have already seen a number of decisions out...more
On the Fourth of July in 2011, a fire damaged a nightclub in Beaumont, Texas. The fire was not unusual, but the lawsuits it generated—O’Quinn v. General Star Indemnity Company, No. 1:13-CV-471 (E.D. Tex. Aug. 5, 2014), and...more
The Eleventh Circuit recently affirmed a decision of the Southern District of Georgia, finding an insured’s claim for water damage fell within an exclusion for loss or damage caused by “surface water.” In Williams v. State...more
When might a court find a reasonable and enforceable suit limitation provision neither reasonable nor enforceable? According to New York’s highest court, it’s when the provision would bar a claim to enforce the replacement...more