The Second Department, Appellate Division, for the Supreme Court of New York, recently held in a matter of first impression, that an insurance company with a duty to defend may not recover defense costs after a determination that no duty
Property Insurance Coverage Insights
Property Insurance Coverage Insights, published by Robinson & Cole LLP, focuses on legal issues related to property insurance policies. The blog covers topics such as duty to defend and indemnify under insurance contracts, recoupment of defense costs, business interruption claims including COVID-19 related exclusions, assignment of benefits disputes, enforcement of suit limitation provisions, and legislative developments addressing insurance claim abuses. It analyzes court rulings and statutory changes affecting insurers, insureds, and contractors, with attention to policy interpretation, exclusions, and procedural requirements in property insurance litigation and claims handling.
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COVID-19 Business Interruption Insurance Claims – Don’t Overlook the Ordinance Or Law Exclusion
The legal media have been inundated with articles by lawyers who represent policyholders and insurance companies discussing business interruption claims arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of this discussion has carried over into the mainstream media, including a recent Wall…
Assignments of Benefits Under Homeowners Insurance Policies: Iowa Supreme Court Rules that Assignment Was Void Because Contractor Was Acting as Unlicensed Public Adjuster
One practice that has plagued the insurance industry in recent years has been contractors soliciting homeowners to make insurance claims after a hailstorm, for example, and then obtaining an assignment of rights to the claim and pursuing litigation against the…
The District of New Jersey Affirms Application of Suit Limitation Provision in Train Derailment
Although we cover a wide variety of topics and issues on this blog, one issue that recurs with some frequency is the appropriate application of suit limitation provisions that are found in most property policies. The latest case to confirm…
New Statutory Framework Confronts Florida’s AOB Crisis
A new law represents a major step forward to remedy Florida’s assignment of benefits (“AOB”) crisis, which Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has described as a “racket” in recent years. On Thursday May 23, 2019, Governor DeSantis signed House Bill 7065,…
The Southern District Finds Unambiguous Policy Language Controls NYU’s Superstorm Sandy Claim
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York recently granted an insurer’s motion for summary judgment in a case arising from Superstorm Sandy based on unambiguous policy language providing a significantly lower limit of liability for…
District of New Jersey Applies Anti-Concurrent Causation Provision to Superstorm Sandy Claim
By Kevin Daly
In a recent decision arising out of Superstorm Sandy, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey confirmed the enforceability of anti-concurrent causation provisions. Zero Barnegat Bay, LLC v. Lexington Ins. Co., No. 14-cv-1716, 2019 U.S. Dist.…
Failure to Cooperate and Misrepresentation: New York Federal Court Grants Summary Judgment Finding Insured Explanations for False Statements “Dubious”
While issues of fact can preclude summary judgment in some cases involving failure to cooperate and misrepresentation, a New York federal court recently granted summary judgment to an insurer in this context. In D’Andrea v. Encompass Ins. Co. of Am.…
Residence Premises Condition: New York Trial Court Grants Summary Judgment Based On a Finding of A “Feigned” Affidavit
A New York trial court recently granted an insurer’s motion for summary judgment pursuant to the “Residence Premises Condition” contained in a homeowner’s insurance policy. Aschmoneit v. Adirondack Insurance Exchange, 2018 N.Y. LEXIS 3418 (August 7, 2018), The court…
District of New Jersey Finds Post-Denial Communications By Insurer’s Counsel Insufficient to Sustain Bad Faith Claim
Under New Jersey law, an insurer cannot be held liable for bad faith in denying an insurance claim if the claim is “fairly debatable.” Therefore, unless a plaintiff can establish a right to summary judgment on the underlying cause of…