Happy Independence Day!

The owners and attorneys of Eaux Holdings were celebrating an early 4th of July on Friday when they received a court Order confirming their bad faith verdict against Scottsdale Insurance. I previously blogged about this case in Hurricane Laura Bad Faith Verdict Against Scottsdale Insurance. Scottsdale is a non-admitted surplus lines insurance company affiliated with and wholly-owned by, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. Continue Reading Scottsdale Insurance Company Bad Faith

When I first started in this business in the early 1980s, there was no such thing as a “supplemental” claim. The “supplemental claim” is a recent legal concept of property insurance claims law made up by Florida’s insurers, the Office of Insurance Regulation, and codified by Florida’s legislature, which is not in existence anywhere else in the United States other than Florida. Continue Reading Appraisal of Supplemental Claims – Are Supplemental Claims Part of The Loss?

The California wildfires have caused damage to many vineyards. We have been involved in a number of coverage and disputed value cases arising from these unfortunate incidents. Smoke can cause damage to a vineyard’s facilities and its crop and wine products. Finished wines can have a perceptible “smoke taint,” which makes wine unmarketable except for salvage value. Continue Reading Vineyard Losses From Wildfires — A Smoky Wine Is Very Different Than Smoke Damaged Wine

Late notice of loss lead to denials in Florida at a very high rate. Insurers claim that they are prejudiced and that a presumption of prejudice arises from late notice. A federal trial court has questioned older legal authority about whether a presumption exists and whether the insurer bears the burden to prove prejudice based on policy language.1 Continue Reading Is Your Denial Based on Late Notice of Loss—Who Has To Prove Prejudice?

A routine roof claim has significant results for Missouri property insurance adjustment. Some insurance companies try to chisel away at amounts owed by making up new arguments and pressing them in court. A Missouri appellate court had none of that, holding insurers should not deprecate labor when calculating actual cash value.1 Continue Reading Do Not Depreciate Labor When Calculating Actual Cash Value—Missouri Appellate Court Upholds Policyholder Win

In a paper worthy of law review publication, Michael Cassel has written an excellent review of Florida’s changing law regarding replacement cost and actual cash value. Exploring The Application of Actual Cash Value Versus Replacement Cost Value in Florida Property Insurance Claims, is a must read for anybody wanting to have a full understanding of Florida’s somewhat complex and changing treatment of replacement cost recovery versus actual cash value. Continue Reading Florida Replacement Cost and Actual Cash Value: A Study by Michael Cassel

Ordinance and Law coverage is often overlooked and confusing when trying to figure out how it is applied to a loss. Most property insurance policies first exclude the increased costs caused by ordinances and laws and then give it back through endorsements or additional coverages subject to limits. Just the meaning of the exclusion, without considering the gap-filling coverage, is confusing for many and wrongly used by insurers to deny what should be a direct payment under general coverage A repair costs. Continue Reading What Does Demolition and Value Mean Under Coverage A of the Ordinance and Law Coverage?

The same contractor that brought the RICO action against insurers allegedly “zeroing out” insurance claims before conducting investigations has filed a malicious prosecution lawsuit against a law firm that represented an insurer alleging fraud and misrepresentation committed by the contractor.1 The introduction to the malicious prosecution lawsuit filed this month states: Continue Reading Insurance Defense Firm Sued For Malicious Prosecution After Fraud Case Dismissed

Insurance companies should prove the reason for not paying a claim under an all risk insurance policy. The denial should not stand on false opinions of fact. This was the point of a brief filed by a medical society in a covid business income claim pending before the New Hampshire Supreme Court.1 Continue Reading Science Debunks Insurers False Opinions That Covid Does Not Physically Damage Property