In 2016, State Farm came out with a new appraisal provision for its homeowner insurance policy.1 This new provision makes the appraisal process extremely burdensome for policyholders. While I have always felt the new provision violates the Standard Fire Policy, a Michigan federal district court recently reached the same conclusion.
Continue Reading State Farm’s Appraisal Provision Violates the Standard Fire Policy
A 1989 Arkansas Insurance Bulletin indicates that arbitration and appraisal clauses are not to be placed into insurance policies. This bulletin is still listed on the Arkansas Department of Insurance website and states:
Continue Reading Is Appraisal Illegal in Arkansas?
Don Malecki was an insurance coverage guru. He wrote many treatises regarding insurance coverage. He was respected and a much sought-after insurance coverage expert. Malecki wrote an article in an insurance agent publication, Rough Notes, entitled, Troubled Terminology: “Risks of Direct Physical Loss” Wording Is Currently Read Broadly By Courts.1 He noted that most policyholders do not understand the basic meaning of “risks of direct physical loss”:
Continue Reading The Troubled Understanding of “Risks of Direct Physical Loss”
History is important. Insurance history gives context and meaning to the thoughts and views of what should be and why things should be the way they were and are. Those historic views have been ever increasingly challenged in social media and very dynamic processes throughout the United States in the past few years. I want to know what people were thinking and what their intent was regarding insurance policy forms. Insurance history and policyholder advocacy is my life.
Continue Reading The History of the Business Interruption Policy In the United States
In part one of this series, located here, I discussed the inherent contradiction that arises when insurers deny claims citing conflicting policy provisions. This follow-up is aimed at reviewing how Florida courts have dealt with this persistent issue.
Continue Reading Denying Claims Based Off Conflicting Policy Provisions Violates Florida Law: Part II
Throughout my years at Merlin Law Group, I have noticed a troubling pattern with insurance carriers: denying claims based on confusing and ambiguous policy language. Perhaps you are challenging a continuous seepage or leakage exclusion or a protective safeguard requirement on your collectibles. It is unlikely the policy defines “seepage” “leakage” or what qualifies as a protective safeguard. However, the Arizona courts and Legislature have brought some clarity to interpreting these unclear provisions.
Continue Reading Clearing Things Up: Interpreting Ambiguities in Arizona Policies
The ISO Virus endorsement and circular is known to all. Those are public information. What about the internal ISO documents? Do they explain why the ISO wrote a virus exclusion? Do they help shed light on the true intention of the commercial policies before such an endorsement?
Continue Reading ISO Internal Documents Are Important Regarding COVID Litigation
It is no secret that insurance adjusters will not hesitate to cite multiple policy provisions justifying a claim denial. I refer to this method as the “kitchen sink” approach, as it accurately describes the attempt to utilize every conceivable exclusion/condition remotely applicable in various insurance claims. It is quite common for an insured to receive a denial letter citing a laundry list of excluded causes of loss.
Continue Reading Denying Claims Based Off Conflicting Policy Provisions Violates Florida Law
While researching how the Tar Heel State interprets insurance policies, I came across two helpful sources that set out how the policyholder is favored. The first is a blog post from Merlin’s own resident expert in North Carolina law, Beaujeaux de Lapouyade. You can read her blog post here.
Continue Reading A Refresher on Interpreting Insurance Policies in North Carolina
Many people think the declarations page and subsequent coverage and exclusion sections make up the important part of an insurance policy. However, add-on forms known as “endorsements” or “riders” may be just as important as they have the ability to significantly change the policy, depending on their language. For example, an endorsement to an insurance contract can add, remove, or change the coverage in the policy. While these pages often come at the end of the contract, they should be read in conjunction with the declarations page and the entirety of the policy.
Continue Reading Reading the Fine Print of Add-On Forms in Policies – Catastrophe Area Notice Limitations and More