Last month, California passed legislation that requires residential property insurers to take specific measures to review the estimated cost of rebuilding or repairing structures insured under residential property insurance policies. Assembly Bill 1797 added section 10103.4 to California’s Insurance Code. With certain, limited exceptions, under the new statute, residential property insurers must, at least biennially, … Continue Reading
Replacement cost insurance generally allows recovery for the actual value of property at the time of loss, without deduction for deterioration, obsolescence, and similar depreciation of the property’s value. Depending on the circumstances, the difference between the actual cash value and the replacement cost value of a loss can be significant.… Continue Reading
In January, state legislators introduced bills to increase and/or extend insurance coverage to policyholders facing declared disasters.… Continue Reading
Under the “Loss Settlement” provision in the typical homeowners property insurance policy, the insurer is not obligated to pay replacement cost benefits unless and until “actual repair or replacement is complete.” The “Loss Settlement” provision also limits the insurer’s replacement cost payment to the lesser of: the limit of liability that applies to the building, … Continue Reading
Under the powers vested by sections 397 and 401 of the Illinois Insurance Code, the Director of Insurance has promulgated certain regulations which provide for a Standard Fire Policy.1 Under the regulations, all fire insurance policies must “conform to such form of the Standard [Fire] Policy or, if another form is used, shall for the … Continue Reading
The California Department of Insurance recently issued a press release announcing that the California Supreme Court affirmed the homeowner reimbursement protections recently decided in California Fair Plan Association v. Garnes.1 Back in June, my colleague Kevin Pollack wrote about the recent decision and whether actual cash value means fair market value or replacement cost minus … Continue Reading
The short answer is yes. In Conway v. Farmers Home Mutual Insurance Company, the California Court of Appeal followed several out-of-state authorities in considering the issue and ruling in favor for the insured.1 Chip Merlin raised this issue with respect to Texas back in 2009 – finding that the courts there apply the law a … Continue Reading
A recent post, Insurance Agents and Determining Coverage Limits for Buildings, generated a number of very interesting comments about the differences between Replacement Cost Value of a building and the Reconstruction Value of a building. There is a difference between the two values and it is a big issue.… Continue Reading
What is an insured, who has an “actual cash value” property insurance policy, entitled to recover when their property is damaged, but not a total loss? Is the insured entitled to the cost to repair/replace the property minus depreciation? Or is the insured’s recovery limited to the property’s fair market value? What if the property’s … Continue Reading
Recently we received a request from a reader inquiring as to who has the responsibility to determine whether a sustained covered loss to a dwelling can be repaired or must be replaced? We always urge a thorough reading of the policy first, to determine what coverages exist, but not all policies are clear. Here’s a … Continue Reading
A recent class action lawsuit filed in Pennsylvania1 raised an issue that policyholder advocates and public adjusters see all over the country – insurers that try to exclude overhead and profit from property damage claim payments made on an actual cash value basis.… Continue Reading
I recently was involved in a lawsuit in which the insurer paid for some of the costs incurred by the insured in repairing his building following a loss. The insurer’s payment was based on a repair cost estimate prepared by its independent insurance adjuster. The insurance policy provided for payment of a loss on a … Continue Reading
The California Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling yesterday requiring insurers to communicate “complete” replacement cost estimates to insureds.1 The ruling not only found the regulation requiring this action to be well within the Insurance commissioner’s authority, but found the basis for the regulation to be well founded. It is a wonderful victory for policyholders … Continue Reading
Many property insurance company adjusters are required by their companies to determine the amount of depreciation to be taken when arriving at amounts of actual cash value. Many are told to determine this amount by determining the replacement cost and then subtracting depreciation. The question is: How are property insurance adjusters trained to determine depreciation … Continue Reading
My colleague Ed Eshoo recently wrote a blog addressing how Illinois courts follow the Prevention Doctrine (if an insurer prevents or hinders an insured from complying with the condition to repair/replace the property before being entitled to full replacement cost, then the insured’s failure to repair/replace won’t necessarily bar a recovery of full replacement costs … Continue Reading
The California Supreme Court will soon decide an issue of great importance to California property policyholders: Whether insurers should be required to communicate “complete” replacement cost estimates to insureds when selling homeowner policies.… Continue Reading
The Broad Evidence Rule has been used in Connecticut to calculate Actual Cash Value (ACV) on property damage cases since 1959.1 That all changed in 2011 when the Connecticut House of Representatives passed Substitute House Bill No. 6238. This bill nullified the Broad Evidence Rule and instead calculated ACV for homeowners and commercial risk insurance … Continue Reading
Most people understand that insurance policies are drafted by insurance companies. There is little to no negotiation of terms between a potential policyholder and the insurance company, so if language is ambiguous it is construed against the drafter—the insurance company. Below you will find details about a recent case out of the Western District of … Continue Reading
Recently, I was asked, “if an insurer initially denies a claim and then later pays or is forced to pay, do they have to pay actual cost value, or replacement cost value?” After a little research on the topic, the old joke, if you ask a lawyer a question, their favorite answer is always, “it depends,” … Continue Reading
Insurance policies may provide several methods to calculate the amount it will pay an insured for a loss. The term replacement cost will be defined or explained in the policy. In a recent federal district court case in Kentucky, Hampton v. Safeco Insurance Company of America,1 the court addressed the meaning of the term “replacement … Continue Reading
Like me, you’ve probably seen Nationwide Insurance’s widely aired commercial touting their service, "Brand New Belongings." The eye-catching ads feature a sleek Cat-Women-like heroine coming to the rescue in every homeowner’s worst nightmare situations, stealthily following behind home-invading thieves to replace the items they steal, or swinging into a fire-damaged apartment to switch out smoke-damaged … Continue Reading
When suing to recoup roof replacement costs in the Lone Star State you need an expert to prove up damages. Texas courts won’t consider a homeowner’s testimony as competent evidence where a roof was replaced and there was a question of the reasonable and necessary cost of the replacement. In Wortham Brothers, Inc. v. Haffner,1 … Continue Reading
New York’s highest court recently held that a policy limitation period, requiring a lawsuit to be brought within two years from the date of loss, is unreasonable and unenforceable…at least under certain circumstances.1… Continue Reading
The last several months I’ve spent the majority of my time on the New Jersey Shore. Among the reconstruction, empty lots, and damaged homes I also see a growing number of “for sale” signs lining the sidewalks. In fact, this was a topic of conversation Tuesday night over dinner with a new client.… Continue Reading
