Timely notice is an important first step in a successful insurance recovery. But insurance policies are not always straightforward in identifying how, when, and to whom notice must be provided. Some states may also impose additional procedural hurdles, including requiring policyholders to contact their insurers before filing suit (the idea behind this requirement is that it may avoid litigation). Failing to comply with pre-suit requirements can hurt the policyholder’s recovery, as illustrated in a recent decision from the Northern District of Texas.
Property Insurance
Hurricane Idalia: Florida Companies – Its Time to Initiate Your Hurricane Preparedness Plans
By Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP on
Hurricane Idalia is rapidly approaching the west coast of Florida, expected to make landfall as a Category 4 hurricane this morning. While the exact track is still being determined, the storm will leave a path of serious damage in its wake. Now is the time to activate your disaster plan and ensure you have your relevant insurance policies in your possession and that you’ve reviewed critical deadlines.
The Hunton Insurance Team has put together a webpage of complimentary resources here for you and your company as you prepare to weather the storm, with tips to help your business mitigate potential storm loss and maximize coverage. You should also review our recent blog post on the important of risk mitigation. Our best wishes for you and your business to stay safe, and dry, during the storm.
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Fine Art in Not-So-Fine Weather
By Rachel E. Hudgins on
Posted in General, Property Insurance
Fine art collections—both public and private—are concentrated in disaster-prone areas like California and Florida, where wealthy individuals often retire. And as the impacts of extreme weather ravage west coast forests and east coast beaches, art collectors in high-risk areas watch their insurance premiums swell and coverage shrink.…
Hunton Offers Amicus Support in First Circuit Review of “Surface Water” Under Massachusetts Law
Posted in Property
Hunton’s insurance team has offered its support on behalf of amicus curie United Policyholders in a brief to the First Circuit concerning the meaning of “surface water” in the context of a broad, all-risk property insurance policy?…
It’s Too Late, Lloyd’s: New York Federal Court Finds Insurer Waived Late Notice Defense
By Latosha M. Ellis & Janine A. Hanrahan on
Posted in Insurance Fundamentals, Property
A New York federal judge recently ruled that an insurer waived its late notice defense because a generic reservation of rights was insufficient to preserve it. As a result, the policyholder’s claim was preserved despite being submitted more than three months after the loss—a delay which would ordinarily be fatal under New York law. The decision underscores the importance both of timely submission of claims and careful attention to reservation of rights letters.
Continue Reading It’s Too Late, Lloyd’s: New York Federal Court Finds Insurer Waived Late Notice Defense
Risk Management in the Metaverse
By Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP on
Posted in General
For many, the “metaverse” sounds like some obscure sci-fi fantasyland. You may be asking, where is it? How does one get there? Chances are, if you are reading this article on a screen then you are already interacting with what could be described as the metaverse. One thing is certain though, if the metaverse is…
Hurricane Warning: Florida and Southeastern US Companies – It is Time to Activate Your Hurricane Preparedness Plan and Review Key Insurance Deadlines
Hurricane Ian is rapidly approaching the west coast of Florida and is expected to make landfall as a Category 4 hurricane near the Tampa area within the coming days. While the exact track is still being determined, there is a chance the storm may also impact insureds in Georgia and South Carolina. Now is the…
It’s a COVID-19 Pandemic; It’s Everywhere – New Cal. Bill to Make Insurers Prove Otherwise
By Scott P. DeVries & Andrea DeField on
On June 29, in a development that may fundamentally change the landscape for California businesses which have sustained COVID-19 related business interruption loss, two California legislators amended pending legislation to address several of the most hotly contested issues regarding insurance recovery for these devastating losses.
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California Appellate Court Holds “Minimal Causal Connection” Satisfies Causation Requirement in All Risk Policies
By Scott P. DeVries & Michael S. Levine on
On May 26, 2020, a California Court of Appeals (4th District) issued its decision in Mosley et al. v. Pacific Specialty Ins. Co. The case arose in the context of a marijuana-growing tenant who rerouted a home’s electrical system and caused an electrical fire. The issue was whether the homeowner’s policy covered the loss. The trial court granted the insurer’s motion for summary judgment and, in a divided decision, the Court of Appeals reversed in part.
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New York Appellate Court Holds Insurers May Suffer Consequences of Delayed Payment of Energy Company Property and Business Interruption Claims
By Syed S. Ahmad & Geoffrey B. Fehling on
Posted in Business Interruption, Property
A New York appellate court recently held that renewable bio-diesel fuel manufacturer BioEnergy Development Group LLC may pursue tens of millions of dollars in damages from its insurers under two all-risk insurance policies, including amounts in excess of the policy limits, where the insurers refused to pay claims in a timely manner.
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Continue Reading New York Appellate Court Holds Insurers May Suffer Consequences of Delayed Payment of Energy Company Property and Business Interruption Claims