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In Helguera v. Mid-Century Insurance Co., California’s Fourth District Court of Appeal held that an intentional acts exclusion in the liability coverage part of a homeowners insurance policy issued by Mid-Century Insurance...more
The Court of Appeals of Georgia recently held that an insurer’s reliance on the report of an independent consultant creates a presumption that it did not act in bad faith in denying coverage. In Montgomery v. Travelers Home...more
Welcome to CICR’s annual review of insurance cases. Here, we spotlight decisions from the last year that you should know about — and a few pending cases to watch. As our picks for “Cases to Know” (below) indicate,...more
“[T]here is no separate cause of action of institutional bad faith,” the Pennsylvania Superior Court recently concluded, referencing Pennsylvania’s bad-faith statute, 42 Pa.C.S. § 8731, in an action by two homeowners against...more
Every policyholder will likely face a scenario where its primary insurer refuses a settlement offer within limits. The primary insurer is potentially liable for that excess verdict if it acted in bad faith by refusing to...more
Bryant v. GeoVera Specialty Insurance Company, No. 4D18-189 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. May 8, 2019) - Hershel and Betty Bryant’s residence sustained damage caused by a pipe leak. The Bryants subsequently reported the loss to...more
A little over a month ago, a judge in Franklin County, Ohio, held that Bitcoin—a popular form of cryptocurrency—constitutes covered “property” under the terms of a traditional homeowner’s policy. In Kimmelman v. Wayne...more
From the high market cap Bitcoin, Ether, Ripple, and Litecoin, to the quirky Fonziecoin, Selfiecoin, Pizzacoin, and (thank you, Dennis Rodman) Pot Coin, we have all been blasted by news of crypto and blockchain, and tales of...more
Recently, in Mallek v. Allstate Indem. Co. No. 17-CV-5949-KAM-SJB, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 42171 (E.D.N.Y. Mar. 12, 2018) [insert link], a federal magistrate in New York recommended that the Court deny a plaintiff’s motion to...more
In Chukly v. American Family Mut. Ins. Co., 2017 WL 3262541 (D.Ariz. Aug. 1, 2017) (Order), a breach of contract and insurance bad faith case arising from a homeowners claim after a microburst and “massive rain,” the Arizona...more
On December 24, 2013, a fire destroyed Plaintiffs’ home. Plaintiffs’ homeowners’ policy, issued by State Farm, required insureds to submit personal property inventories within sixty days after a loss. Three days after the...more
On July 27, 2016, the United States District Court for South Carolina ordered an insurer to turn over its privileged communications. The Court explained that the insurer waived the protections afforded under the...more
The Paslays sued State Farm for failing to pay a portion of the damage caused to their Pacific Palisades house by a heavy rainstorm and for forcing them to move back into the house while it was still under construction. The...more
In Grebow v. Mercury Insurance Company (No. B261172, filed 10/21/15), a California appeals court held that coverage for collapse in a homeowners policy does not extend to prophylactic repairs undertaken to mitigate damage...more
California Court: Rejected Demand Within Policy Limits Not Necessary for Bad Faith Claim - Why it matters: Insurers must proceed with caution when they become aware that a settlement within policy limits is possible,...more
In Albert v. Mid-Century Insurance Co. (No. B257792, filed 4/28/15, ord. pub. 5/20/15), a California Court of Appeal held that an insured’s trimming of a neighbor’s trees which allegedly damaged the trees was not an accident...more
In Schumacher v. State Auto. Mut. Ins. Co., No. 13-cv-00232, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11857 (S.D. Ohio Feb. 2, 2015), the Southern District of Ohio struck class allegations from a putative class action alleging breach of the...more