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Insurance Litigation Property Damage Natural Disasters

Zelle  LLP

Texas Department of Insurance Approves ZestyAI’s Severe Convective Storm Models

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Severe Convective Storms (“SCS”) are one of the most common and most damaging natural catastrophes in the United States. SCSs are intense atmospheric disturbances that can cause powerful winds, large hail, heavy rainfall, and...more

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

How Your Business Can Weather Big Sur’s Latest Landslide

After heavy rains on March 30, 2024, a section of the southbound lane of famous Highway 1, which sits atop dramatic cliffs near Big Sur, collapsed and crumbled into the Pacific Ocean. The incident occurred near Rocky Creek...more

Cozen O'Connor

Court Finds Policy Term, “Windstorm,” to be Ambiguous in Coverage Dispute Involving Tornado

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In Mankoff v. Privilege Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange (2024 WL 322297 (Tex. App.—Dallas Jan. 29, 2024)), the Court determined that the term “windstorm” was ambiguous as utilized in the subject insurance policy....more

Woodruff Sawyer

Concurrent Cause Issues in Insurance: How to Unravel the Language

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Property insurance policies are complex legal contracts. That’s because the insurance industry has its own language and processes that can be subject to multiple interpretations. ...more

Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

Wind v. Flood in the Wake of Hurricane Ian

In late September, 2022, Hurricane Ian made landfall in Southwest Florida and traveled across the state.  The storm brought with it significant storm surge that caused substantial flooding.  The storm also was accompanied by...more

Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

Nuanced Aspects of Hurricane Claims: Civil Authority, Ordinance or Law, and Mobile Home Claims

The adjustment of hurricane claims sometimes involve discrete issues regarding either special coverages under insurance policies or different types of structures governed by a patchwork of federal and state laws....more

Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

Tips for Investigating Subrogation in Florida Following Hurricane Ian

Hurricane Ian was a devastating storm for southwest Florida. While out in the Gulf of Mexico, it became a high-end category 4 hurricane early on September 28, 2022 and made landfall later that afternoon. The areas where Ian...more

Cozen O'Connor

When Better Late Than Never Isn’t Good Enough: Florida Federal Court Grants Summary Judgment For Insurer In Late-Reported...

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On September 27, 2021, Judge Jose Martinez of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida granted summary judgment in favor of Scottsdale Insurance Company in LMP Holdings Inc. v. Scottsdale Ins. Co., case...more

Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

Florida’s Second DCA: Coverage Can Remain at Issue Even After Insurer’s Payment

A Florida appellate court recently made clear that the issue of insurance coverage can remain in dispute, even where an insurer has already paid out some benefits to an insured in connection with a claim.  Avatar Prop. & Cas....more

Chartwell Law

Plaintiff Maintains Initial Burden of Proof to Establish Causation in Hurricane Irma Claims

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Florida Statute §627.70132 allows an insured to make a claim for an alleged hurricane loss within three years of the event. This statute, however, is not a waiver of the insured’s initial burden of proof to establish...more

Cozen O'Connor

New Hurricane Harvey Opinion Provides a Roadmap to Defeating Common Policyholder Attorney Tactics

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Policyholders attorneys often try to skip the threshold steps of bringing their client’s claim within coverage and allocating between covered and non-covered causes of loss.  Instead, the policyholder attorney would have the...more

Carlton Fields

Flooded: Court Finds “Named Windstorm” Coverage, and Not Flood Sublimit, Applies to Superstorm Sandy Water Damage Claim

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When the National Weather Service names a storm heading in your direction, you know to expect wind and water. This can create a quandary for property insurers. Is water damage from a named windstorm caused by the flood or the...more

Carlton Fields

New York Appellate Court Affirms Denial of Discovery Into Other Hurricane Sandy Claims

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In Knickerbocker Village Inc. v. Lexington Insurance Co., New York’s Appellate Division, First Judicial Department, dictated a clear rule for single-insured cases regarding the discovery of an insurer’s treatment of insurance...more

Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

The Evolving Limitations on Appraisers in Florida: Analyzing State Farm Florida Ins. Co. v. Sanders

Appraisers are frequently involved in Florida property claims. Accordingly, Florida courts continue to refine the roles and limitations with respect to appraisers and the appraisal process as a whole. ...more

Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

What Baseball Has Taught Me About The Insurance Appraisal Process

Anyone who has ever watched baseball knows that umpires sometimes make an incorrect call. In appraisal of a property insurance claim, sometimes the umpire can make a mistake as well....more

Ward and Smith, P.A.

What! My Flood Policy Doesn’t Cover Flood Damage?! This, and Other Pitfalls of NFIP Flood Insurance Policies

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Congress created the National Flood Insurance Program (the "NFIP") to help make flood insurance more affordable in higher-risk areas. FEMA oversees the program and writes the terms of the Standard Flood Insurance Policy...more

Carlton Fields

Opening The Pandora’s Box Of Flood Policies, Or How Filing Suit Against Flood Insurers Can Effectively Reduce The Suit Limitations...

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When is an insurer’s “Rejection of Proof of Loss” letter for flood insurance damage, which states on its face that it “is not a denial of your claim,” nevertheless a written denial of claim? According to the Third Circuit in...more

Rumberger | Kirk

Resolving The Multiple Peril Puzzle In First Party Insurance Claims

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First party insurance claims involving multiple perils present unique challenges when assessing whether an insurance policy provides coverage. For example, suppose an insurance policy covers damage resulting from fire, but...more

Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

Contingency Fee Multipliers: Florida Supreme Court Rejects Rare and Exceptional Circumstances Requirement

Contingency fee multipliers increase attorney fee awards substantially. The general custom in American law is that each party is responsible for his or her own attorney’s fees, regardless of the outcome of the action. See...more

Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

Alabama and Mississippi Insurance Law Questions Following Hurricane Nate

Hurricane Nate made landfall on the Mississippi Gulf Coast near the city of Biloxi on Sunday, October 8, 2017, as a Category 1 Hurricane. The eastern quadrant of the storm’s center also passed over significant portions of...more

Cozen O'Connor

Flood Exclusion Unambiguously Excludes Coverage For $49.5M In Hurricane Sandy Losses Caused By Storm Surge

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Cozen O’Connor attorneys Thomas McKay III, Richard Mackowsky, Charles Jesuit, and Melissa Brill recently secured summary judgment from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in favor of Great...more

Carlton Fields

Hurricane Harvey: Insurance Statutes and Regulations

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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

Zelle  LLP

Insurance Takeaways From Texas’ New Hailstorm Bill

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On Feb. 1, 2017, the Texas Department of Insurance published the results of its presentation to the Texas Legislature titled: “Interim Charges: The Cost of Weather-Related Property Claims and Related Litigation.” Notably, the...more

Robinson+Cole Property Insurance Coverage...

Suit Limitation Period In Standard Flood Insurance Policy Is Not Tolled By Filing In State Court: Hurricane Irene Claim Dismissed...

The terms and conditions of the Standard Flood Insurance Policy (“SFIP”) are specified by regulations promulgated under the National Flood Insurance Act (“NFIA”). One of the terms in the SFIP provides that the insured cannot...more

Robins Kaplan LLP

When is a Flood a “Flood”: East Coast Edition

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Last month, heavy rainstorms in California brought to the forefront the issue of what is a “flood” under California law, particularly in regard to rain and surface water. We noted a California court held “flood” in its plain...more

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