According to a recent ruling by a New York appellate court, coverage for excavation damage is precluded by the policy’s earth movement exclusion. In 3502 Partners LLC v. Great American Insurance Co. of New York, Case No. 2021-03449 (N.Y. App. 1st Dep’t Apr. 21, 2022), an insured sued its insurer under a first-party policy, alleging in its complaint that its property sustained damage as a direct result of excavation work at an adjacent lot. About The Authors
Accepting coverage for part of a claim may subject an insurer to a policy’s appraisal process when the extent of covered damage is in dispute, according to a recent ruling issued by the Eastern District of Tennessee. In Morrow v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., Case No. 1:21-CV-00133-DCLC-CHS, 2022 WL 885863 (E.D. Tenn. Mar. 22, 2022), a severe storm with strong winds and tornadic activity damaged the insured’s home in Manchester, Tennessee. After the storm, the insured promptly reported the damage to her home to her insurer. The insured’s policy covered direct physical loss to her home, other structures on her property, and her personal property. The insurer acknowledged that the damage to the insured’s home was covered under…
Covid-19 may cause businesses to be unable to use their property, but loss of use doesn’t constitute the “direct physical loss or damage” necessary to trigger commercial property insurance coverage, according to a first-of-its kind New York appellate court decision issued Thursday. About The Author
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently issued an unpublished opinion in Atain Specialty Insurance Company v. JKT Associates, Inc., Case No. 20-16366 (9th Cir., March 11, 2022), finding that a liability policy’s “Subsidence Exclusion” barred coverage for a lawsuit arising out of a landslide. About The Author
A policy renewal requires a living insured to form a valid insurance contract, the Sixth Circuit recently ruled. In Boby Davis, et al. v. Westfield Ins. Co., Case No. 21-2797 (6th Cir. Mar. 14, 2022), Della Shields received a yearly homeowner’s insurance policy covering her home in Muskegon, Michigan from 2013 until her death in March 2018. Shields was the sole named insured in the yearly policy declarations. About The Authors
A Florida appellate court recently interpreted a “Concealment or Fraud” provision that voids coverage where an insured makes “material false statements” as requiring intentional deception, extending the split amongst the Florida appellate courts. In Vargas v. SafePointe Ins. Co., No. 3D19-1656, 2022 WL 108428 (Fla. 3d DCA Jan. 12, 2022), a homeowner reported a water loss to her property insurer following a plumbing leak. The insurer immediately requested repair invoices from prior claims and photographs of the pre-loss condition of the property. The homeowner, however, never provided this information. Instead, she submitted a sworn proof of loss with an itemized estimate. About The Author
The Second Circuit has now joined the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh Circuits in holding that no insurance coverage exists for business interruption losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated government orders. In 10012 Holdings Inc. v. Sentinel Insurance Co. Ltd., No. 21-80-cv, Slip. Op. (2d Cir. Dec. 27, 2021), the insured fine arts gallery and dealership in New York City sought coverage under three provisions of its insurance policy for losses and extra expenses incurred when it suspended its operations in accordance with government restrictions on non-essential businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic. When the insurer denied coverage, the insured filed suit asserting claims for breach of contract and declaratory judgment. The United States District…
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has joined seven other Circuits in finding no coverage for COVID-19 business interruption claims.[1] In Terry Black’s Barbecue, L.L.C. v. State Auto. Mut. Ins. Co., 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 287 (5th Cir. Jan. 5, 2022) and Aggie Invs., L.L.C. v. Continental Cas. Co., 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 393 (5th Cir. Jan. 6, 2022), the Fifth Circuit considered claims under all-risk policies. In Terry Black’s Barbecue, the policy included provisions for loss of business income and extra expense. To trigger such coverages, the policy required that the suspension of operations “must be caused by direct physical loss of or damage to property at the premises.” The policy’s definition of “period of restoration” was the period…
