The Court of Appeal reversed the trial court's granting of a motion for judgment on the pleadings, dismissing the insured's claim for loss due to the presence of COVID-19. Brooklyn Restaurants, Inc. v. Sentinel Ins. Co., Ltd., 2024 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 1754 (Cal Ct. App. March 20, 2024).      Brooklyn secured a policy from Sentinel with an endorsement for "Limited Fungi, Bacteria, or Virus Coverage." ("Virus Endorsement"). In March 2020, Brooklyn submitted a claim for loss of business income due to the coronavirus at its restaurant, Harry's Coffee Shop. Sentinel ..read more

    The insured's claim for collapse of his roof and deck failed due to defective design and other exclusions under the policy. Dudar v. State Farm & Cas. Co., 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52706 (N.D. Ga. Feb. 6, 2024).      The insured submitted a claim to State Farm for damage to the roof ("Roof Claim"). State Farm's adjuster placed a ladder on the deck to access the roof and a portion of the deck collapsed. The insured then reported a claim to State Farm for damage to the deck ("Deck Claim"). The claims were denied and suit was filed.     The roof had leaked ..read more

    The Washington Supreme Court found there was coverage for resulting loss despite the original faulty contraction, an exclusion in the policy. Gardens Condominium v. Farmers Ins. Exchange, 2024 Wash. LEXIS 165 (Wash. March 14, 2024).      Farmers issued a policy to Gardens Condominium providing coverage for loss or damage caused by a "Covered Cause of Loss." "Covered Cause of Loss" was defined as any risk of direct physical loss. However, a loss was not covered if it was caused by an excluded event. The policy further provided that damage was caused by an excluded e ..read more

    The California Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court's decision that the defending insurer was not entitled to reimbursement of defense costs from another insurer based upon a subcontract and additional insured endorsement. Zurich Am. Ins. Co. v. Old Republic Gen. Ins. Corp., 2024 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 1261 (Cal. Ct. App. Feb. 28, 2024).      Martin McNerney Development Company (McNerney) entered a construction contract to perform seismic upgrades and tenant improvements for condominiums. McNerney and Broadway Mechanical Contractors, Inc. (Broadway) entered a ..read more

    The court determined that coverage for a loss by fire could not be denied when the insured's son failed to appear for a examination under oath (EUO). Adekola v. Allstate Vehicle & Prop. Ins. Co., 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 27125 (E.D. Pa. Feb. 16, 2024).     Plaintiff had a homeowners policy with Allstate. Plaintiff - Michele Adekola - was the named insured under the policy. After the fire, Allstate provided payments for temporary housing. Allstate requested examinations under oath of Plaintiff and her son, Nico. Plaintiff and her son were examined by Zoom. Allstate then ..read more

    The California Court of Appeal held that because the insurer failed to send a cancellation notice to the adult child named in the auto policy as an insured, the policy remained in effect when the child was involved in an accident. Molinar v. 21st Century Ins. Co., 2024 Cal. App LEXIS 124 (Cal. Ct. App Feb. 26, 2024).     In 2006, Silvia Escarcega and Alberto Molinar purchased an auto policy from 21st Century.  In 2013, when their daughter, Tania, turned 18 years old, Tania was added to the policy. 21st Century increased the premium to cover her. A new declaration p ..read more

    The Fifth Circuit reversed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the insurer on a cyber risk claim. Southwest Airlines Co. v. Liberty Ins. Underwriters, Inc., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 996 (5th Cir. Jan. 16, 2024).     Southwest suffered a massive computer failure, which resulted in a three-day disruption of its flight schedule. Approximately 475,839 Southwest customers experienced either a flight cancelation or a delay of two hours or more.      Southwest had a cyber risk policy issued by non-party AIG, Inc. The policy included a provisio ..read more

    The Fifth Circuit vacated a discovery order issued by the district court and remanded the case for issuance of a stay while the arbitrability of the coverage dispute was reviewed. Cameron Parish Recreation #6 v. Indian Harbor Ins. Co., et al., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 3804 (5th Cir. Feb. 19, 2024).     The plaintiffs purchased surplus lines polices from various insurance companies to provide coverage for commercial properties. The policies included an arbitration provision for resolving any disputes. After plaintiffs were denied coverage for damage to their properties from ..read more

    The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the district court's finding that Southwest had no coverage for a cyber claim. Southwest Airlines Co. v. Liberty Ins, Underwriters, Inc., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 996 (5th Cir. Jan. 16, 2024).      On July 20, 2016, Southwest suffered a massive computer failure, which resulted in a three-day disruption of its flight schedule. Approximately 475,839 Southwest customers experienced either a flight cancelation or a delay of two hours or more. Southwest held a cyber risk policy from AIG which included a provision for "System Failu ..read more

    With the insurer conceding that there was evidence of potential collapse at portions of eight specific building locations, the court granted the insurer's motion for partial summary judgment in determining no additional buildings suffered from collapse. Exec. 1801 LLC v. Eagle W. Ins. Co., 2024 U.S. Dist. LEZXIS 5923 (D. Or. Jan. 11, 2024).      Executive 1801 owned a group of six buildings with eighty-six residential units. The court previously granted partial summary judgment on Executive 1801's rain damage claim, leaving only claims regarding collapse. Eagle ins ..read more