Page 3 - Covered Cause News Today

To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog: Responding to the Texas Winter Storm Crisis: Issue 2—Winter storms and wide-area events like the one that recently devastated Texas leave behind challenging questions about business interruption insurance coverage. TAKEAWAYS Property insurance policies with business interruption coverage and case law require close inspection to determine the proper method for measuring business interruption claims following wide-area impact catastro...

To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog: I have a basket in my office that I fill with things that I should read. Sometimes I print an article about an interesting book or person and put it in the basket. Sometimes I place an outline from a Zoom program that I half-listened to while I was working on other tasks in the basket. New laws and ideas for this column are routinely placed in the basket. At times, my basket starts to overflow. When that happens, I know that it needs ...

To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog: Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly referred to as PFAS or PFOS, have been a key ingredient in numerous industrial and consumer products for decades. These man-made chemicals are prevalent and are also known for their longevity in the environment. More recently, PFAS have been the focus of thousands of lawsuits alleging personal injury and property damage. Some insurers have already questioned whether PFAS could ri...

To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog: On January 15, 2021, U.S. District Judge William S. Stickman granted defendant National Fire & Marine Insurance Company’s Motion to Dismiss a complaint filed by plaintiff 1 S.A.N.T, Inc. 1 S.A.N.T. brought a putative class action lawsuit against National Fire, seeking insurance coverage for loss of business income due to COVID-19-related restrictions placed on it.   1 S.A.N.T. operates Lawrence County-based Gatherings Banquet and E...

Year in Review: Top Insurance Cases of 2020 Thursday, January 28, 2021 Not surprisingly, COVID-19 business interruption insurance disputes dominated media headlines for most of 2020. Nonetheless, there were a number of other insurance rulings that will undoubtedly shape the coverage landscape. Policyholders enjoyed a number of significant wins including significant victories related to COVID-19 business interruption cases. The start of a new year gives us an opportunity to highlight s...

Tuesday, January 26, 2021 Two federal cases in the Northern District of Ohio recently reached very different conclusions on whether the state’s COVID-19 shutdowns of restaurants permit valid claims for business interruption insurance coverage. Reviewing essentially the same facts and policy provisions, one court found for the insurer, holding no coverage to exist. The other found for the policyholder, awarding coverage. The opposite results will no doubt lead to further upcoming app...

Friday, December 18, 2020 On December 9, 2020, in  Light Stream Spa v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Ins. Co., No 2:20-cv-00265-RAJ-LRL (E.D.V.A. Dec. 9, 2020), a Virginia federal court refused to dismiss a majority of the policyholder’s breach of contract claim and its request for bad faith damages, declaratory judgment and class certification, all stemming from the insurers’ denial of coverage for COVID-19 related business income losses. The policyholder, a spa, purchased an all...

To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog: COVID-19 has certainly been a devastating and disrupting force for businesses in 2020. Since the pandemic began, a major point of contention between corporate policyholders and insurers is whether these disruptions rise to “business interruptions” as defined under insurance policies offering business interruption (BI) coverage. Companies often purchase BI coverage as part of traditional “all-risk” commercial property policies....

Viewpoint: Key Property Loss Provisions Attorneys Keep Forgetting By Chris Boggs | December 16, 2020 Are you tired of talking about COVID? I am. Are you as tired of the COVID business income coverage debates? I am. Because I’m so worn out, this article focuses on ONE, ok two, key policy provisions every attorney and most judges seem either to forget or are purposely ignoring. Maybe it is because these provisions apply only when two conditions meet: The poli...