Insurance companies always seem to be at the ready with quite a few defenses up their sleeves, including – the technical defense of late notice. The traditional notice rule did not require the insurance company to show there was prejudice, it was simply enough for them to show the notice was untimely. Thankfully, many states now require the insurance company to show that the late notice was actually prejudicial to the investigation of the claim.
While researching the issue of late notice of a property loss in Mississippi, I came across a case involving a failure to appear at an examination under oath.1 The language of the Order speaks for itself:
Continue Reading Mississippi Requires Prejudice For a Policyholder To Lose Coverage For Failure to Appear at An Examination Under Oath
Anybody who joined me for our Hurricane Ida webinar yesterday could tell that Steve Mullins is an aggressive and experienced property insurance advocate. Steve was born in New Orleans and is the eldest son of Louisiana parents. Steve grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and along the Mississippi Gulf Coast in Ocean Springs. He is a proud graduate of Ocean Springs High School, where he was active in football, student government, and all sorts of fun that is available when you live along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. I know about those fun things because I lived in Waveland, Mississippi, for three of my best formative years.
Continue Reading Steve Mullins With Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama Ties Joins Merlin Law Group
“Can I recover my attorney’s fees?” This is a practical question that might come to the minds of insureds when trying to recover their insurance proceeds following a disaster. In Mississippi, the answer to that question depends entirely on the circumstances of the case at hand.
Continue Reading The Current State of Recovering Attorney’s Fees in Mississippi
The Mississippi Insurance Department (MID) seeks to “impartially enforce the laws and regulations” relating to the insurance industry.1 It does this in part by reviewing and investigating consumer complaints about their insurance companies and agents. If you live in Mississippi and think that your insurance claim or policy has been delayed, wrongly denied, or deliberately underpaid, you can file a complaint with LDI and request an investigation into the matter.
Continue Reading How to File a Complaint with the Mississippi Insurance Department
Mississippi unfair claims practice law and bad faith actions are unique. Following Hurricane Katrina, I took the Mississippi Bar and represented hundreds of Mississippi businesses and residents with insurance disputes arising from Hurricane Katina. I was honored to represent the grandparents of my co-author in this blog post. As a kid, I lived for three years in Waveland, Mississippi. Merlin Law Group is still being retained on property insurance disputes in Mississippi. Since her interest in property insurance law started with our firm’s work in Mississippi, I look forward to working with Kathryn on those cases after she gets the results from her bar examination.
Continue Reading Understanding Mississippi Unfair Claims Practice and Bad Faith Cases Based on Delay
Hurricane Sally appears headed to the Mississippi Sound and Louisiana. Adjusters already working Hurricane Laura claims will be shifting efforts to Hurricane Sally. While there is legal authority suggesting that causation can be determined in Louisiana appraisals,1 Mississippi has long held that causation issues will not be allowed in appraisal and that a lawsuit will have to determine those issues.2
Continue Reading Mississippi Does Not Allow Causation to Be Determined In Appraisal
On March 30, 2020, the United State Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an opinion in Mitchell v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Company,1 on the interpretation of the term “Actual Cash Value.”
Continue Reading Interpretation of Actual Cash Value in Mississippi
On August 17, 2018, the 49th anniversary of Hurricane Camille, the benchmark in Mississippi for devastation and survivability prior to the impact of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the Mississippi Insurance Department (“MID”) filed its adoption of Rule 34.11 to amend the Mississippi Homeowner Insurance Policyholder Bill of Rights (“Policyholder Bill of Rights”) to include an Outline of Coverage and Comprehensive Policyholder Checklist.1
Continue Reading Mississippi is “Moving Slow as Molasses in January”
The principle that once you give something, you can’t ask for it back has been deeply ingrained since childhood. It is born from the idea that when you give, you give freely and without obligation. Like many playground rules, the principle has worked its way into law. The Voluntary Payment Doctrine (VPD) made its first appearance in civil law in the English case of Bilbie v. Lumley holding “that the money having been paid with full knowledge, or with full means of knowledge of all the circumstances could not now be recovered back again.”1
Continue Reading The Voluntary Payment Doctrine: No Takebacks!