Archives: Insurance General

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Maximizing recovery of pre-notice defense costs: Considerations for policyholders

By Eric Toepfer and Evan Knott on Posted in Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
In a world of uncertainty, few things in life are more guaranteed than liability insurers reflexively rejecting claims for pre-notice defense costs, even where there is no legitimate or principled basis to do so. In a perfect world, insureds would immediately notify their insurers as soon as a claim or suit arises to avoid insurers refusing … Continue Reading

An insurance company’s generic reservation of right can lead to a Waiver of a Late Notice Defense

By Anthony B. Crawford on Posted in Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Property Damage & Business Interruption
For insurance recovery attorneys, one of the more frustrating ways for a policyholder to lose coverage for a property loss is on the basis of late notice. Property insurance policies generally require the policyholder to give the insurance company “prompt notice” of claims and potential claims. Property policies may specify a timeframe in which the … Continue Reading

California Supreme Court to offer guidance for COVID-19 coverage cases

By Ashley Jordan and Elizabeth Bowman on Posted in Business interruption, COVID-19, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
Courts continue grappling with the application of California insurance law to COVID-19 business interruption claims. After three years of insurance claims and litigation, the California Supreme Court has agreed to provide guidance as to whether the actual or potential presence of SARS-CoV-2 on insured property can qualify as physical loss of or damage to property … Continue Reading

Key questions corporate tech, legal, and security officers need to ask when considering cyber coverage

By Russell Squire on Posted in Cyberliability, D&O, E&O, Professional Liability, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
Cyber incidents and attacks, whereby hackers target companies for ransom, to obtain sensitive information, or for other reasons, are a significant and growing threat. In 2021 alone, cyber incidents caused roughly $6 trillion in losses, and the consensus is that the threat of incidents will remain strong. Corporations are increasingly seeking insurance against this risk, … Continue Reading

Key issues for policyholders under Florida’s new tort reform bill 

By Garrett Nemeroff and R. Hugh Lumpkin on Posted in Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Insurance News of Note
On the heels of last year’s special session on Florida’s property insurance crisis, which, among other things, eliminated one-way fee shifting in property insurance cases, the Florida Legislature has now passed even more aggressive pro-insurer legislation as part of a broader tort reform bill aimed at addressing “frivolous” litigation. House Bill 837 is not limited … Continue Reading

D&O coverage dispute? Don’t forget about the Delaware option

By Stephen Raptis on Posted in D&O, E&O, Professional Liability, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
Corporations embroiled in coverage disputes with their D&O insurers may be in the unenviable position of having to bring a lawsuit to enforce their rights. One of the first considerations the corporation faces is where it should file its coverage action. Some may assume that they are limited to the jurisdiction where the corporation principally operates or … Continue Reading

Key considerations for policyholders after landmark biometric privacy decisions reshape insurance landscape

By Noel Paul on Posted in Commercial General Liability, Employment Practices Liability, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
The landscape of biometric privacy litigation already has changed dramatically in 2023. Last month, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled in Tims v. Black Horse Carriers, Inc., 2023 IL 127801, that claims for violations of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) (which allows individuals to sue companies directly for the wrongful collection or disclosure of … Continue Reading

An insurance company’s refusal to settle can be bad faith, even if the policyholder ultimately prevails at trial

By Matt Rosso on Posted in Commercial General Liability, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
As a general rule, if a policyholder reasonably attempts to settle a case for an amount at or within the limits of its insurance policy, the insurance company must put the policyholder’s interests above its own. Typically, if the insurance company does not accept a reasonable settlement within limits, then it may be responsible for a judgment … Continue Reading

Coverage issues for medical monitoring claims

By Adrienne N. Kitchen on Posted in Environmental, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
Following the February 3, 2023 derailment of 38 train cars carrying hazardous materials, resulting in a chemical spill and controlled burn in East Palestine, Ohio, several lawsuits have been filed seeking medical monitoring for people living in the affected areas. Medical monitoring programs may allow for the early discovery and treatment of latent injuries even … Continue Reading

Rhode Island Supreme Court recognizes that context and case law matter in interpreting policy exclusions

By Elizabeth Taylor and Max Louik on Posted in Environmental, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Property damage
At the end of January, the Rhode Island Supreme Court concluded that a pollution exclusion contained in a general liability policy did not bar coverage for a suit alleging that the policyholder’s negligence caused 170 gallons of home heating oil to leak into its customer’s basement resulting in property damage.  Regan Heating & Air Conditioning … Continue Reading

Navigating the “Bump-Up” exclusion in 2023: Rules for the road

By Carolyn Rosenberg, Andy Moss and Jessica E. Gopiao on Posted in D&O, E&O, Professional Liability, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Insurance News of Note
M&A activity is making a comeback in 2023, according to Bloomberg Law (“M&A Roars Back in $40 Billion Surge Led by Miners, Storage” A. Kirchfeld and D. Nair, Feb. 6, 2023). The rise in transactions—and the likelihood of claims involving them—will no doubt lead to continued D&O insurance coverage disputes over the “bump up” exclusion. Policyholders … Continue Reading

Too damaged to repair? How to maximize your insurance recovery

By Andrew Roman on Posted in Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Property Damage & Business Interruption
When a loss event badly damages a key piece of equipment or machinery, an insured business often faces the complicated question: repair or replace? This is especially so when the extent of the damage is unclear because some may still be hidden. A business presented with this dilemma is well advised to go through that … Continue Reading

A tale of two opinions: The meaning of “physical loss” in the context of commercial property policies for Covid-19-related losses in Pennsylvania

By Andrew Kintner and Max Louik on Posted in COVID-19, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Property Damage & Business Interruption
With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, businesses across the country were forced to shut their doors and turn to their commercial property insurance companies to seek coverage. With their properties having been rendered useless for their intended (and insured) business purposes, these insureds reasonably expected their “all risk” policies would provide the promised … Continue Reading

Even positive reforms can carry hidden risks –A potential limitation period “trap” in the UK’s Third Parties (Rights against Insurers) Act 2010

By Mark Pring on Posted in Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
At a time when, globally, insured businesses are under severe financial strain, the availability and extent of their insurance assets take on a new significance. It is significant not just for troubled businesses and their insurers, but also for third parties with potential or actual claims against those businesses.  An insured may, for example, notify … Continue Reading

Physical loss and reasonable expectations of policyholders: The Third Circuit whiffs

By Douglas C. Rawles on Posted in COVID-19, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Property Damage & Business Interruption
On January 6, 2023, the Third Circuit affirmed lower court rulings in 14 consolidated appeals from orders dismissing claims for property damage and business interruption losses resulting from the coronavirus and/or COVID-19. Policyholder lawyers can (and will) find fault with many parts of Wilson v. USI Ins. Service LLC, Case No. 20-3124, in which the Third … Continue Reading

Liability insurance in mass tort bankruptcy cases – A brief primer

By Andrew Muha on Posted in Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Mass tort
Chapter 11 bankruptcy as a means for resolving mass tort claims In recent years, a growing number of defendants have sought to use reorganization under chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code to obtain permanent and complete relief from mass tort claims. Many of these entities were defendants in asbestos bodily injury litigation, and were … Continue Reading

Policyholders seeking coverage for Covid-19-related losses may have reason to be optimistic

By Nicholas Insua on Posted in Business interruption, COVID-19, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
I recently wrote about lessons that could be learned from the ongoing insurance coverage jurisprudence related to the coronavirus / Covid-19 pandemic.  That article discussed broad trends that had developed and cohered across this vast litigation landscape, through multiple decisions in many courts over the course of several months or more.  Although descriptive, most of … Continue Reading

COVID-19 business income claims – Will state appellate courts reject federal court predictions as to state law?

By Rich Lewis on Posted in Business interruption, COVID-19, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Property Damage & Business Interruption
In the past few months, in cases considering whether SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 can cause direct physical loss or damage to property so as to trigger business income coverage, policyholders have secured three wins in state appellate courts: Ungarean in the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, Huntington Ingalls in the Vermont Supreme Court, and Cajun Conti in the Louisiana … Continue Reading

California Supreme Court rules in favor of policyholders: what we learn from Yahoo! Inc. v. National Fire Insurance 

By Elizabeth Bowman, David E. Weiss and Tim Law on Posted in Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Insurance News of Note
Earlier this month, the California Supreme Court, in Yahoo Inc. v. National Union Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Supreme Court of California No. S253593, ruled in favor of Yahoo, Inc. (Yahoo!), a policyholder seeking insurance coverage for Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) claims. The case came to the California Supreme Court as a certified question … Continue Reading

Hurricane Ian and Hurricane Nicole: Answering questions policyholders frequently ask (or should ask) to ensure maximum recovery

By Jessica E. Gopiao and Matthew B. Weaver on Posted in Business interruption, Environmental, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Property Damage & Business Interruption
At $40-70 billion in estimated insured losses, Hurricane Ian is the nation’s second most expensive natural disaster for the insurance industry. Less than two months later, Hurricane Nicole made landfall in Florida. Securing insurance coverage for these losses will be an important part of rebuilding and recovery. Recently, Reed Smith’s insurance coverage lawyers hosted a … Continue Reading

Direct physical loss in COVID Coverage cases: Are policyholders seeing a litigation shift in favor of COVID-19 coverage?

By Connor O'Carroll, Elizabeth Bowman and David E. Weiss on Posted in Business interruption, COVID-19, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic led to unprecedented closures and losses for businesses throughout the United States. Naturally, policyholders have sought recovery for pandemic-related losses under their “all risk” commercial property policies. According to the University of Pennsylvania Carey School of Law Covid Coverage Litigation Tracker, there have been approximately 2,300 of these COVID-19 coverage cases … Continue Reading

Maximizing recovery for combined wind and flood damages in hurricane claims

By Maria Castro Sanchez and Matthew B. Weaver on Posted in Business interruption, Insurance General, Property Damage & Business Interruption
This year, Hurricane Ian swept through the Southeastern United States, causing extensive damage to property in the affected areas. While obtaining insurance recoveries for any loss can be a complex endeavor, recovery for hurricane loss is particularly complex, as it typically involves a mix of covered and excluded perils. Most standard homeowners or other property … Continue Reading

Amy’s Kitchen: A step in the right direction

By Adrienne N. Kitchen and Douglas C. Rawles on Posted in COVID-19, Insurance Coverage, Insurance General, Property Damage & Business Interruption
On October 4, the California First Appellate District in Amy’s Kitchen, Inc. v. Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company, 2022 Cal. App. LEXIS 836, reversed a trial court’s order granting the insurer’s demurrer in a COVID-19 property damage claim, and remanded to allow the policyholder to amend its allegations of loss under a communicable disease coverage extension.  … Continue Reading
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