A very positive aspect of working at Merlin Law Group is working with a lot of passionate attorneys doing the same area of law. As a result, we get to share ideas about the best methods to handle cases and issues arising in the field of property insurance law. We even have a lawyer who is a licensed attorney, Ruck DeMinico, who does not work on any cases as a primary attorney but is a Knowledge Manager to support other lawyers. We can better spot, research, and make the best arguments for our clients.       This Wednesday, I will be giving a presentation at the First P ..read more

Have you heard about ChatGPT? Are you subscribing to services that make your research faster, more efficient and easier because of artificial intelligence?   I made a number of artificial intelligence inquiries about “claims leakage.” Using ChatGPT, here are some of the results:    Has policyholder attorney Chip Merlin criticized the use of claims leakage goals? Yes, Chip Merlin, a prominent policyholder attorney and founder of the Merlin Law Group, has been a vocal critic of the use of claims leakage goals in the insurance industry. In his blog and various speaking engagements ..read more

A pamphlet, Are Our Schools Safe After the Marshall Fire, caught my attention. The bottom line is that smoke damage caused by urban wildfires is much more dangerous than conventional wildfires. The parents of school children in the vicinity of the Colorado Marshall Fire are correctly raising concerns about the safety of schools impacted by toxic smoke damage.     The pamphlet had the following questions and answers about urban smoke damage: 1. If you can’t see it or smell it, it is safe. False. Every heard of carbon monoxide or radon? Many smoke particulates can only be se ..read more

An insurance class action case in Nebraska recently discussed obligations of good faith and fair dealing.1 Nebraska recognizes that the breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing is actionable and provides policyholders with extracontractual remedies. The court noted Nebraska general law regarding good faith arising in the first-party context:      Nebraska law recognizes that ‘[a]n insurance policy is a contract.’ Lynch v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 745 N.W.2d 291, 296 (Neb. 2008). ‘The implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing exists in every c ..read more

Mike Duffy and yours truly will be speaking at the First Party Claims Conference next week. Our presentation will analyze recent trends in property claims and will focus on the following topics: Proof of Loss and Amount of Claim Issues Appraisal Assignment of Benefits Inflation and Coinsurance Fire and Smoke Claims Depreciation of Labor Surplus Lines Policy Form Changes Here is the entire program: I look forward to meeting with those attending the reception the night before and answering questions from those at the conference next Wednesday. Thought For The Day I never learn anything t ..read more

Policyholders must be aware of arbitration clauses found in property insurance policies. Even if a state has an anti-arbitration law, most courts send the disputes to arbitration and possibly apply another state’s laws if the insurers are not based in the United States. For example, yesterday, a federal court ruled:1   An increasing majority of district and circuit courts have concluded that state anti-arbitration statutes do not reverse-preempt the U.N. Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. Though rationales diverge, the Supreme Court appear ..read more

A recent law review article, Policyholder Misrepresentation in Insurance Claims,1 written by insurance law professor Jay Feinman raised the issue of insurance companies wrongfully claiming fraud as a claims practice. Personally, I am sick and tired of the overuse of fraud allegations by insurance companies and their propagandists. Based on the significant amount of fraud claimed by insurance defense counsel and insurance company lobbyists, insurance seems to be a product more addictive than opioids because it turns a great deal of an otherwise innocent public into criminals.   Feinma ..read more

An editorial to the Palm Beach Post asked the title question of this post. The answer seemed very obvious when it noted:1 ‘[I]nsurance companies, executives and agents have donated at least $74 million to Florida politicians or business groups.’ The top recipient: Gov. Ron DeSantis, pulling in $3.3 million. And there’s this gem: Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, has raked in nearly $2 million — from the industry he’s supposed to regulate. Suppose organized criminals, the MAFIA, could make donations to the police. Do you think the amount of crime would go up while the accou ..read more

The Florida Republican leadership is in bed with the insurance industry. Republican Donald Trump said so yesterday, as noted in yesterday’s post, Donald Trump and Chip Merlin Agree—Ron DeSantis and Florida Republican Leadership Has Sold Out to Insurance Company Lobbyists. An example of this is Florida’s public records of consumer complaints about public adjusters versus complaints about insurance companies.  Florida’s current Republican leadership is trying to pass insurance industry written laws that make it more difficult to hold insurance companies accountable for bad faith and wr ..read more

The Tampa Bay Times and other news media reported on an apparent message by former President Donald Trump, which states the following: In addition to wanting to cut Social Security (and raise the minimum age to at least 70) & MediCare, RINO Ron DeSanctimonious is delivering the biggest insurance company BAILOUT to Globalist Insurance Companies, IN HISTORY. He’s also crushed Florida homeowners whose houses were destroyed in the Hurricane – They’re getting pennies on the dollar. His Insurance Commissioner does NOTHING, while Florida’s lives are ruined. This is the worst Insurance Scam in th ..read more