Property
-
March 31, 2025
Insurer Off The Hook For Tribe's COVID Casino Shutdown
Lexington Insurance Co. does not owe a Washington tribe business-loss coverage after COVID-19 forced the shutdown of the tribe's casino, a Washington state appeals court said Monday, ruling that the virus did not cause direct physical loss or damage to tribal properties.
-
March 31, 2025
Insurer Must Cover $2.4M Water Damage, Condo Owners Say
A Washington condo association has filed a federal consumer protection complaint against Country Casualty Insurance Co., alleging $2.4 million in unpaid claims for hidden water damage to exterior sheathing and framing the condo association says is covered by its property insurance policy.
-
March 27, 2025
P&C Insurers Return To Profits Amid Economic Uncertainty
Property and casualty insurers collected record-setting profits in 2024, but macroeconomic conditions and other factors threaten to stymie their growth, says a broker and author of a recent report. Here, Law360 speaks to Vince Gaffigan about what drove growth, the looming risks ranging from inflation to catastrophic weather events, and what brokers and insureds should do to ready themselves against an array of uncertainties.
-
March 27, 2025
Amid New Political Reality, NAIC Says No Fed Insurance Office
State insurance regulators made a significant push to limit perceived federal intrusion into their authority last week when their primary deliberative body called for the abolition of a U.S. Treasury office tasked with identifying and reporting on risks to the industry.
-
March 27, 2025
Ga. Firm Sues Allstate Over Wrecked Car Fee Coverage
A Georgia law firm hit Allstate Insurance Co. with a proposed class action over allegations that it fails to pay title transfer fees and license registration fees to insureds who incur total loss claims.
-
March 27, 2025
Insurer Can't Escape Auto Co.'s $50M COVID Coverage Suit
An insurer can't escape an auto parts manufacturer's suit seeking $50 million in coverage for COVID-19-related losses, a North Carolina federal court ruled, saying the manufacturer sufficiently alleged that its losses are covered under the policy's communicable disease endorsement.
-
March 27, 2025
AIG Drops Water Damage Suit Against NFL Player's Contractor
An insurer who sued the contractor and plumbers who worked on the home of NFL player Darius Slay for more than $300,000 in water damage dropped the suit Thursday, after the companies never responded to it.
-
March 27, 2025
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
An insurer will pay nearly $1 million to resolve claims it failed to protect drivers' data, Michigan's top court will take up two car insurance appeals, the Fifth Circuit was asked to set precedent with an assault coverage ruling and PNC Bank NA can't get coverage for a more than $106 million judgment. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.
-
March 26, 2025
Sotomayor Urges Caution On Nondelegation Doctrine Revamp
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor cautioned her colleagues during oral arguments Wednesday against using a challenge to the Federal Communications Commission's administration of a broadband subsidy program as a way to resurrect the long-dormant nondelegation doctrine. Several conservative justices, however, seemed willing to disregard that admonition.
-
March 26, 2025
Ill. Justices Hold WestRock Unit To $5M Superfund Coverage
The Illinois Supreme Court won't hear a WestRock Co. subsidiary's petition for review of an appeals decision affirming that one of its insurers had no duty to cover environmental cleanup costs at a now-shuttered paper mill while another insurer already paid its applicable coverage limit.
-
March 26, 2025
Insurance Rep Gets 41 Months For $6M Bank Fraud
A Georgia federal judge sentenced an insurance broker to 41 months in prison after he pled guilty to defrauding a credit union out of $6 million through loans to commercial borrowers for insurance premiums.
-
March 25, 2025
Baltimore Bridge Collapse: One Year Later
Federal accident investigators' recent determination that Maryland could've done more to protect Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge from a devastating collapse may complicate the sprawling legal battle over liability and damages in the year since a cargo ship struck the bridge and crippled a major East Coast transportation hub.
-
March 25, 2025
Insurers Claim 4th Circ. Must Revisit Ruling For Aluminum Co.
Insurers in a coverage cap dispute with an aluminum company have asked the Fourth Circuit to reconsider an opinion holding that an ambiguous policy provision must be construed in the company's favor, calling it contrary to South Carolina law.
-
March 25, 2025
Texas Church Says Insurer Owes Over $1M For Hail Damage
A Texas church said it is owed more than $1 million from its insurer for wind and hail damage after a June 2023 storm, according to a complaint removed to federal court Tuesday.
-
March 25, 2025
State Farm Beats Suit Alleging Property Loss Undervaluation
A Pennsylvania federal judge on Tuesday tossed a proposed class action brought by homeowners accusing State Farm of limiting compensation by improperly employing a "new construction" setting in software when calculating property damage, finding their policy did not require the insurer to use a specific computation method for loss calculations.
-
March 24, 2025
Feds Seek About 5 Years For Insurance Rep's $6M Bank Fraud
Georgia federal prosecutors recommended that a Florida insurance broker who pled guilty to defrauding a credit union out of $6 million through loans to commercial borrowers for insurance premiums be sentenced to between 51 and 63 months in prison.
-
March 21, 2025
Hail Deductible Applicable In Colo. Townhomes' Storm Dispute
A homeowners association's insurer correctly applied a hail deductible when it issued a roughly $1,600 payment despite the association's $3.5 million damage estimate, a Colorado federal court ruled Friday, rejecting the association's argument that the deductible became void once the insurer breached the policy by underpaying coverage.
-
March 21, 2025
Travelers Wants Exit From $4.5M Faulty Apartment Settlement
Travelers told a Georgia federal judge Friday that the insurer should not owe the lion's share of a construction contractor's $4.5 million settlement over botched site work at an apartment complex, arguing the bill should be footed by the company's primary policies with Amerisure.
-
March 21, 2025
La. Town Tells 5th Circ. No Arbitration For Hurricane Claims
A Louisiana town seeking hurricane damage coverage urged the Fifth Circuit to uphold a Louisiana district court's decision finding an arbitration clause unenforceable, noting the Louisiana Supreme Court explicitly said it disagreed with a recent Fifth Circuit ruling that had ordered arbitration under similar circumstances.
-
March 20, 2025
State Farm's Calif. Rate Request Exemplifies Long Negotiation
California regulators' provisional approval of State Farm's premium increase request following the Los Angeles fires is another step forward in an insurance reform process that insurance pros view as a negotiation that has been protracted to the detriment of consumers.
-
March 20, 2025
Opioid Orders Weigh Insurers' Role In Fighting Societal Harm
Rulings barring supermarket chain Publix and drugmaker Mallinckrodt from obtaining coverage for underlying opioid claims have contributed to insurers' continued success in defining their obligations to these claims while raising the question of whether insurance is intended to help protect against widespread societal harm.
-
March 20, 2025
Property Owner Demands Appraisal Of $10.5M Hail Claim
A Tennessee property owner asked a federal court Thursday to order a Travelers unit to participate in an appraisal of its hail damage claim, alleging the insurer denied coverage even though an "independent evaluation" of the owner's damages estimated that the hail damage exceeded $10.5 million.
-
March 20, 2025
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
The California Department of Insurance provisionally approved State Farm's request for an emergency rate hike, a North Carolina federal court found a convicted insurance mogul's company liable for $57 million in misappropriated client funds, and the Fifth Circuit reversed an insurer's win in a bar assault coverage dispute. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.
-
March 19, 2025
Law360 Announces The Members Of Its 2025 Editorial Boards
Law360 is pleased to announce the formation of its 2025 Editorial Advisory Boards.
-
March 17, 2025
Insurers Fight For Arbitration In La. Hurricane Damage Dispute
A group of insurers is urging the Fifth Circuit to send its dispute with a Louisiana municipality over coverage for property damage caused by a pair of Category 4 hurricanes to arbitration, despite an opposing ruling last fall by the state's top court.
Expert Analysis
-
What's In NY's Draft Guidance On AI Use In Insurance
Last week, the New York State Department of Financial Services released proposed guidance for insurers on the use of artificial intelligence systems and external consumer data and information sources for underwriting and pricing purposes, and these standards will likely help form the basis of an eventual nationwide insurance regulatory framework on AI, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.
-
Insured Takeaways From 10th Circ. Interrelated Claims Ruling
The Tenth Circuit's recent ruling in American Southwest Mortgage v. Continental Casualty that multiple claims arising from consecutive audit years were interrelated — and thus subject to a per claim limit — creates a concerning precedent for policyholders, so companies should negotiate relevant policy language, says Michael Stockalper at Saxe Doernberger.
-
3 Significant Ohio Insurance Updates From 2023
The past year saw some significant changes and developments in Ohio's insurance coverage landscape, from new bad faith discovery mechanisms relating to out-of-state property to the Ohio Supreme Court's interpretation of what constitutes an assault or battery for coverage purposes, say Jenna Pletcher and William Peseski at Brouse McDowell.Â
-
Policyholders Must Object To Insurer Reorganizations
When insurance companies reorganize, policies often take years to ultimately pay out a fraction of what is owed, so policyholders should organize and urge insurance commissioners to take action when retroactive reinsurance deals are announced, says Jonathan Terrell at KCIC.
-
SEC, NY Cybersecurity Rules Create Complexity For Insurers
Two separate cybersecurity rules recently adopted by the New York Department of Financial Services and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission pose distinct challenges for insurance industry participants, with important interactions, and potential tensions, for those required to comply with both frameworks, say attorneys at Debevoise.
-
5 Trends To Watch In Property And Casualty Class Actions
In 2023, class action decisions have altered the landscape for five major types of claims affecting property and casualty insurers — total loss vehicle valuation, labor depreciation, other structural loss estimating theories, total loss vehicle tax and regulatory fees, and New Mexico's uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage sale requirements, say Mark Johnson and Mathew Drocton at BakerHostetler.
-
Insurance Considerations For Cos. Assessing New AI Risks
Because no two businesses will have the same artificial intelligence risk profile, they should consider four broad risk categories as a baseline for taking a proactive approach to guarding against AI-related exposures, say attorneys at Hunton.
-
AI Brings New Insurance Concerns For Healthcare Providers
As the healthcare industry increasingly invests in medical artificial intelligence tools, it confronts a variety of liability risks that necessitate careful consideration and potential recalibration of providers' insurance programs, say Marialuisa Gallozzi and Megan Mumford Myers at Covington.
-
Superfund Site Reopenings Carry Insured Risk, Opportunity
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's reported plans to reopen certain Superfund sites citing the presence of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances raise notable liability concerns, but may also present unique opportunities for policyholders under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, say attorneys at Haynes and Boone.
-
3 AI Regulation Developments Insurers Must Follow
Insurance regulators continue to actively develop regulations and guidance on the use of artificial intelligence, so insurers should be aware of recent developments from the Colorado Division of Insurance, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and the New York Department of Financial Services, say attorneys at Willkie.
-
DC Ruling Provides Support For Builders Risk Claim Recovery
To deny coverage for builders risk claims, insurers have been increasingly relying on two arguments, both of which have been invalidated in the recent U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia decision, South Capitol Bridgebuilders v. Lexington, say Greg Podolak and Cheryl Kozdrey at Saxe Doernberger.
-
Deal Over Jets Stranded In Russia May Serve As Blueprint
In the face of a pending "mega-trial" over leased airplanes held in Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, a settlement between leading aviation lessor AerCap Holdings NV and NSK, the Russian state-controlled insurance company, could pave the way for similar deals, say Samantha Zaozirny and Timeyin Pinnick at Browne Jacobson.
-
Illinois Trump Tower Ruling Illuminates Insurance 'Occurrence'
In Continental Casualty v. 401 North Wabash Venture, an Illinois appellate court found that Trump Tower was not entitled to insurance coverage for operating its HVAC system without a permit, helping to further define a widely litigated general liability insurance issue — what constitutes an "occurrence," say Robert Tugander and Greg Mann at Rivkin Radler.