The plaintiffs discovered heating oil had contaminated a residential property they had just purchased.  They sued the sellers, alleging that they had concealed the spill.  A default judgment entered.  The plaintiffs then sued Arbella, the sellers’ homeowner’s insurer.  Arbella denied the claim, asserting that the source of the plaintiffs’ injury was the sellers’ concealment of the oil, which is not an occurrence under the policy.  The Superior Court agreed with Arbella.  In Creamer v. Arbella …

The Insurance Library, one of the best resources for insurance professionals from experienced coverage litigators to new adjusters, is asking for messages about how it has helped you.  The earliest responders get prizes!  Here’s the link for more information. …

I first posted about insurance risks in car-sharing programs back in 2011.  Car-sharing programs allow car owners to rent their own cars out to others.  They differ from Uber (which was in its infancy in 2011) and Lyft (which did not exist then) in that the vehicle owners do not drive passengers themselves — they hand their cars over to others.  Some of the obvious insurance issues include whether or not the owners have adequate…

Frequent readers of this blog know that I abhor waivers of liability, especially (but not only) waivers that parents have to sign so that their minor children can participate in activities such as summer camps or public school field trips.  Waivers of liability are the written forms you are sometimes required to sign stating that if you get hurt (or your child gets hurt) because the company making you sign the waiver did something wrong…

A union’s Pension and Annuity Funds (“the Funds”) alleged that the Wellesley Advisory Realty Fund  (WARF) had mismanaged and squandered a $5 million investment.  WARF put the money into various real properties such as hotels.  The properties were foreclosed upon or lost all their value due to unpaid taxes and mortgages. The Funds sued WARF for negligence and ERISA violations. WARF’s insurer, Scottsdale Insurance Company, declined to defend it under a Business and Management Indemnity…

Agency Checklists has a good summary here. …

Valerie Troiano injured Elsa Villanueva in a car accident.  After a jury trial a judgment of $414,500 entered for Villanueva.   Commerce, Troiano’s insurer,  paid the $100,000 policy limit.  An execution against Troiano entered in the amount of $552,352.37 (which presumably included interest.) Villanueva sued Commerce, alleging that it had engaged in unfair settlement practices when it initially failed to settle her claim for the $100,000 policy limit.  After trial a verdict entered in favor of…