Goldberg Segalla, Author at The Insurance & Reinsurance Report

September 18, 2019 Uncategorized

Insurer Entitled to Reimbursement for Defense Costs Prohibited by Statute

In October 2017, the California Attorney General (AG) filed a complaint against Adir, doing business as department store chain Curacao, and its CEO under the state’s Unfair Competition Law (UCL) and False Advertising Law (FAL).[1]

Adir presented a claim based on the AG’s action under a directors and officers liability policy issued by Starr Indemnity and Liability Company. Starr initially denied coverage, but after receiving a letter from Adir, Starr agreed to provide a defense, subject to a reservation of rights. Starr later received …

September 10, 2019 Commercial General Liability

No Defense Owed to Insured for Mediation Involving Environmental Contamination

The Illinois Appellate Court recently held that the term “suit” in a commercial general liability policy does not include a pre-suit mediation between the insured and others over the allocation of costs incurred to remediate environmental contamination. As a result, the court ruled that the insurers had no obligation to reimburse the insured for its legal fees incurred in the mediation.[1]

The insured operated a manufacturing facility on a property that was eventually declared a Superfund site by the U.S. EPA. To avoid litigation …

September 5, 2019 Uncategorized

Seventh Circuit Holds That Replacement Cost Coverage Requires Aesthetic Matching in Hailstorm Claim

In the latest entry of “matching” jurisprudence under first party property policies, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, acknowledging that jurisdictions have reached conflicting results and applying Illinois law, held that a carrier was required to replace undamaged siding to match the panels replaced due to damage in a hailstorm.[1] In doing so, the court affirmed the Northern District of Illinois’ award of summary judgment in favor of the insured on that issue.

The parties’ dispute arose out of a May 2014 hailstorm that …

August 14, 2019 CCPA

Part 2: Insurance Company Compliance with the CCPA as Businesses

This blog post is our second post in a multi-part series addressing what insurers need to know about the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). This post focuses on insurers’ compliance obligations under the CCPA. If you would benefit from a background discussion on the CCPA, please visit our first post in this series entitled “Part 1: The California Consumer Privacy Act – What Insurers Need to Know.”

The CCPA applies to insurers to the extent they qualify as “businesses” that “collect or determine …

July 30, 2019 Uncategorized

Florida’s Assignment of Benefits Reform Bill Becomes Law Ahead of Peak Hurricane Season

Florida’s new Assignment of Benefits (AOB) reform bill became law on July 1, 2019, a short time ahead of the peak of this year’s hurricane season. Time will tell if it results in the amelioration of the AOB litigation epidemic, fueled by Florida’s Attorney’s Fee Statute Section 627.428, awarding attorney’s fees to prevailing assignees in insurance disputes. The attorney’s fee statute is credited with having incentivized Florida contractors to litigate even minor differences[1] with insurers over repair work performed or proposed for insureds. Legal …

July 22, 2019 Cyberinsurance

What Is Modern Warfare? Ninth Circuit Rules War Exclusions Do Not Preclude Coverage for First Party Loss Caused by Hamas Rocket Attacks

On July 12, 2019, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found two “war” exclusions inapplicable, under California law, to a loss caused by 2014 hostilities between Israel and Hamas. Universal Cable Productions, LLC v. Atlantic Specialty Insurance Co., No. 17-56672, 2019 WL 3049034 (July 12, 2019). In doing so, the court overturned the Central District of California’s award of summary judgment in favor of Atlantic Specialty Insurance Company.

The parties’ dispute arose out of Atlantic’s refusal to indemnify Universal for costs associated with Universal’s …

July 17, 2019 Uncategorized

Texas Supreme Court Opens the Door for Statutory Damages After Appraisal

Good faith use of the appraisal process to resolve legitimate valuation disputes under a property policy is no longer an absolute defense under Texas law to claims for statutory delay damages. In a pair of decisions regarding appraisal, the Texas Supreme Court held that when appraisal is invoked after the commencement of litigation, the prompt payment of the award by an insurer precludes statutory bad faith claims under Chapter 541 of the Texas Insurance Code, but potentially allows for statutory delay damages of interest and …

July 10, 2019 Uncategorized

When a Bad Apple Spoils the Bunch: An Appraiser’s Bias May Cost the Policyholder in the Long Run

In a long-awaited decision, Colorado’s highest court ruled a designated appraiser in a property insurance dispute must remain impartial and free from favoring one party over the other. Specifically, the Supreme Court held that the policy language required appraisers to be “unbiased, disinterested, and unswayed by personal interest.” This decision is a win for the insurance industry, although the Supreme Court created a framework that is certain to lead to disputes about an appraiser’s partiality in the future.

The decision in Owners Insurance Co. v. …

July 3, 2019 CCPA

Part 1: The California Consumer Privacy Act — What Insurers Need to Know

Assembly Bill No. 375, better known as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), is likely the most robust and sweeping privacy law in the United States. This is not surprising as California is notoriously at the forefront of passing privacy legislation, even though close to 20 other states are also taking steps to pass similar legislation.

The CCPA, which becomes effective January 1, 2020, creates a number of consumer rights regarding the collection, storage, selling, and processing of personal information, as well as corresponding business …

June 14, 2019 Uncategorized

Pennsylvania Federal Court Reinforces The Principle That Liability Policies Insure Against Legal Obligations Owed To Others

Defense and indemnity obligations owed under liability policies depend on the allegations made in the underlying lawsuit. In NVR, Inc. v. Motorists Mut. Ins. Co., 2019 WL 989393 (W.D. Pa. Mar. 1, 2019), NVR, an additional insured under a CGL policy sought coverage for two lawsuits that arose out of a heater explosion at a construction site. NVR was the defendant in personal injury litigation. In a separate lawsuit, NVR sought recovery for property damage that it incurred due to the explosion. The personal injury lawsuit …