Electrical Currents Exclusion Bars Coverage for Damage to City’s Power Station In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of Iowa, applying Iowa law, affirmed the appellate court’s ruling that an electrical currents exclusion applied to bar coverage for property damage resulting from an electrical arc that was triggered by a squirrel. In November 2014, a squirrel entered an electrical power plant in the City... Read More
Use of Incorrect Ingredient in Baby Formula Not “Physical Injury to Tangible Property.” The Court of Common Pleas of Delaware County Ohio, applying Ohio law, granted summary judgment in favor of an insurer holding that the insurer has no duty to defend or indemnify policyholder in an underlying breach of contract action because the tainted product did not qualify as covered property damage as defined by... Read More
Applying GA Law, Coverage for Welder’s Lung Claim Barred by Pollution Exclusion. In an unpublished opinion, the Eleventh Circuit, applying Georgia law, affirmed a district court decision holding that a lung disease resulting from the inhalation of welding fumes fell within a policy’s pollution exclusion, because it qualified as an injury arising out of the release, escape or dispersal of a pollutant. John Flowers,... Read More
Consumer Fraud, Bad Faith and Misrepresentation Claims Dismissed. In a first party property insurance case, Magistrate Judge Kim, Northern Dist., Eastern Div., IL, dismissed various causes of action including consumer fraud, misrepresentation and bad faith. The Plaintiffs, Propitious, LLC (“Propitious”) and Connacht, LLC, (“Connacht”), sued Badger Mutual Insurance Company (“Badger”) and Society Insurance (“Society”), for coverage under two separate insurance policies for water damage to a... Read More
Triggered Despite Allegations That Defamation Made Knowingly. A federal court for the Central District of Illinois, in an opinion written by Judge Shadid, applied Illinois law and granted an insured’s motion for summary judgment on the duty to defend. The court found that because the policy at issue arguably provided coverage for libel or slander, the insurer had a duty... Read More
No Coverage for Refinery Fire and EPA Violations Indemnification Claim A district court in Arkansas, applying Arkansas law, granted Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Co.’s (“Liberty Mutual”) motion for summary judgment finding that all of the claims at issue for indemnification against its insured, Murphy Oil Corporation (“Murphy”), fell squarely within its policy exclusion for liability because of “assumption of liability in a contract or agreement.” The... Read More
Fact Question Regarding Malpractice Insurer’s Failure to Settle Within Limits The Seventh Circuit, applying Indiana law, reversed the district court and held that a question of fact existed as to whether the plaintiff malpractice insurance company committed a “Wrongful Act” by rejecting two settlement offers for policy limits in an underlying case. The underlying case stemmed from the death of Vicki Bramlett from complications following a... Read More
Allegedly Damaged Goodwill Does Not Trigger EPL Coverage The Seventh Circuit, applying Indiana law, affirmed the district court’s ruling and found no coverage for the underlying lawsuit which alleged the plaintiff used DirecTV’s satellite television programming for its businesses without paying a higher commercial subscription rate. The Seventh Circuit disagreed that the underlying lawsuit, which included allegations for damaged goodwill, involved “slander, invasion of privacy, defamation or humiliation.” ... Read More
Malicious Prosecution Trigger is Date of Exoneration Not Filing of Charges An Illinois appellate court, in an opinion written by Justice Pucinski, applied Illinois law and reversed the trial court’s dismissal of the insured’s complaint seeking a declaration of coverage for an underlying suit which alleged malicious prosecution. According to the appellate court, coverage for the “offense” of malicious prosecution was not triggered until the... Read More
Multiple bridge collapses constitute “Related Claims” under professional liability policy The Fourth Circuit, applying North Carolina law, affirmed summary judgment in favor of an insurer and held that the collapse of two bridges designed by the insured was subject to a policy’s $3 million per claim liability limit because the claims were “related claims” that arose from the same design... Read More
